UCU discusses features of the Ukrainian IT sector with French ambassador to Ukraine
On November 25, Etienne de Ponsen, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of France to Ukraine, visited the Ukrainian Catholic University. For the guest, the meeting was his first official visit to Lviv, so, according to him, it was interesting to visit one of the best universities in the city and the country.
The meeting and conversation with M. Etienne took place in the format of a round table, to which, in addition to the leadership of the University, representatives of the Lviv Business School of UCU (LvBS) joined. "Since my activities are closely intertwined with the IT industry, I am open to discussions on this topic. The information technology sector is very relevant both in France and in Ukraine, so I am glad to hear feedback on possible cooperation from representatives of the educational sphere, " the guest began the meeting.
Sofia Opatskaya, Vice-rector for academic and pedagogical work, founder and Dean of LvBS, told about the achievements of the University, business school and UCU its program: "We teach the best students, so we want to create the best conditions for them. UCU influences are numerous: the quality of education, the development of start-ups, the support of the IT industry, the training of leaders, in particular among young men and women, the education of free journalism and the like. We also have projects that aim to develop the relations with the French-speaking community, such as the annual summer school campus "Emmaus" - part of the world community "L'Arche", created by Jean Vanier."
During his stay in Kyiv, M. Etienne was shown the UNIT.City, an innovative Park engaged in the development and implementation of IT industry projects. During the visit to UCU, the guest had the opportunity to get acquainted with the graduates of Lviv business school. In particular, CEO of KindGeek Anton Skrypnyk, R&D director of SoftServe Mykola Maksimenko, CEO of "Artelogic" Tural Mamedov and the like presented their projects. Alumni consider their biggest achievements to be access to the American and European markets, and among the obstacles in building business ties with France is the language barrier.
Matilda Arjakovskaya, a representative of the Economic Department of the Embassy, was also at the meeting. Together, we were looking for an answer to the question of how to build communication between the two countries and within the it sphere, how to effectively share experiences, respond to changes, and create a platform to promote achievements and opportunities for cooperation on the basis of the business school.
The meeting ended with an exchange of gifts and a souvenir photo. In addition to talking with UCU staff and alumni, M. Etienne also had the opportunity to walk around the campus and communicate with the community informally.
