Nuclear Energy Education Gets a Boost from the IAEA

The IAEA conducted its first INEAS university mission in April in Ust Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan, a country that is looking to restart its nuclear power programme. The mission — which engaged more than 90 participants from academia, government and industry — laid the ground for the development of a new bachelor’s degree programme in the ‘Operation of Nuclear Power Plants’ at the D. Serikbayev East Kazakhstan Technical University. It included curriculum workshops, technical visits and stakeholder consultations.

The IAEA also participated in an international forum with 14 expert presentations from Kazakhstan, Belarus and Russia, highlighting international best practices in nuclear education. Key outcomes included recommendations for planning national human resources development, curriculum enhancement, and expansion of cooperation through IAEA technical projects and STAR-NET, a regional network that promotes education and training in nuclear technologies.

“We are grateful to the IAEA for sending experts to our university to support the development of nuclear energy infrastructure. Their assistance also proved very helpful in designing the educational programme,” said Aizhan Baidildina, an associate professor at the?the D. Serikbayev East Kazakhstan Technical University.

Kazakhstan, which is working with the IAEA to develop the infrastructure to reintroduce nuclear power, aims to complete its first nuclear power reactor in the next eight years. Its construction is expected to provide clean, reliable energy to the Central Asian country of 19 million people. Scientific and technical personnel are also being trained to operate the plant. Kazakhstan has the second largest uranium reserves in the world, accounting for 14 per cent of the global total. The country currently operates research reactors as well as several other nuclear installations related to the front end of the nuclear fuel cycle.

The inaugural national INEAS mission was conducted earlier this year in Cotonou, the largest city in Benin. Benin is prioritizing education and capacity building in water management, nuclear medicine, security and safety. The INEAS mission focused on developing guidance for assessing and planning sustainable nuclear education programmes; strengthening national coordination to build capability; and creating indicators to plan and monitor programme sustainability.

The mission brought together national stakeholders in nuclear education and training under one umbrella and created a forum and action plan for future collaboration, including a preliminary assessment of educational capabilities in the country.