During the official part of the visit, concluded with the signing of the agreements, Bialystok University of Technology was represented by: Rector Assoc. Prof. Marta Kosior-Kazberuk, DSc, PhD, Eng., and Vice-Rector for Education Assoc. Prof. Katarzyna Halicka, DSc, PhD, Eng. The Uzbek side was represented by leading representatives of two prominent institutions: Prof. Dildora Makhmudova, Head of the Department of Municipal Engineering at Tashkent University of Architecture and Civil Engineering, and Prof. Abduvokhid Urazkeldiev, Director of the Scientific Research Institute of Irrigation and Water Problems.
Uzbekistan in Bialystok University of Technology’s internationalisation strategy
Cooperation with Uzbekistan has been a key element of Bialystok University of Technology’s foreign relations strategy for years. The University has long implemented agreements within the Erasmus+ KA171 programme with centres such as Karshi State Technical University and Tashkent State Technical University. In April 2026, the partner catalogue was expanded to include Samarkand State Architecture and Construction University (SamSACU).
– Uzbekistan is a highly attractive destination for us. Primarily because students there want to study in Europe, and our University makes a strong impression on them, both through its scale and its high positions in rankings – emphasises Assoc. Prof. Katarzyna Halicka, DSc, PhD, Eng., Vice-Rector for Education.
Continuation and new double degree programmes
The relations between Bialystok University of Technology and Tashkent University of Architecture and Civil Engineering in Uzbekistan are already well established. In 2021–2022, both universities implemented double degree agreements at the second-cycle level in civil engineering and environmental engineering. In 2024, contacts were strengthened through the Erasmus+ (KA171) programme, which enabled academic staff and student mobility, including guest lectures.
The agreements signed on 14 May 2026 open the next stage of cooperation. They envisage the implementation of double degree programmes at the first- and second-cycle levels in three study programmes:
- Architecture,
- Environmental Engineering,
- Civil Engineering.
Bialystok University of Technology has the necessary experience in implementing such initiatives, developed, among others, within the International School of Engineering (ISE), conducted jointly with Tianjin Chengjian University in China.
Academic staff expertise and PB’s teaching offer
Dean of the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Environmental Sciences, Prof. Michał Bołtryk, DSc, PhD, Eng., highlights the unique competences of the University’s academic staff, who effectively combine European educational standards with experience in working with partners from the East.
– We are fully prepared to educate foreign students. Every year, we host around 200 international students. Our staff is highly skilled in teaching in English and Russian. I myself authored a Russian-language textbook on building materials, which allows students in the East to learn engineering based on European standards – emphasises Prof. Bołtryk.
Joint research on water resources
An important element of the new agreement with the Scientific Research Institute of Irrigation and Water Problems is research cooperation. In the era of climate change, the priority for both sides has become water-saving technologies and intelligent management of water resources. Cooperation will focus on:
- research projects in the field of hydromelioration and geoinformation systems,
- improving methods for managing saline soils,
- training young research staff, including doctoral and habilitated researchers.
Presentation of laboratory facilities
An important part of the visit was familiarising the guests with the University’s infrastructure. The delegation from Uzbekistan visited, among others, the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering (microscopy laboratories), the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Environmental Sciences (Water and Wastewater Technology Model Laboratory and the Renewable Energy Laboratory), and the Bialystok University of Technology Library at the Centre for Modern Education.
Shifting the focus of cooperation to Central Asia allows Bialystok University of Technology not only to adapt to new geopolitical conditions but also to have a tangible impact on educating staff who, in the future, will build Uzbekistan’s infrastructure based on proven European technical solutions.
The Uzbek delegation included:
- Prof. Dildora Ernazarovna Makhmudova (Head of the Department of Municipal Engineering at Tashkent University of Architecture and Civil Engineering),
- Prof. Muchajjo Mujdindżonovna Kambarova (TUACE),
- Prof. Abduwohid Bachtijarowicz Urazkeldiev (Director, Scientific Research Institute of Irrigation and Water Problems),
- Prof. Ilhomżon Ernazarowicz Machmudow (Director of the Water-Saving Technology Centre, Scientific Research Institute of Irrigation and Water Problems),
- PhD Umidżon Abdusamadownicz Sadijew (Deputy Director, SRI IWP).
Prepared by Monika Rokicka
See photos from the visit of the Uzbek delegation to Bialystok University of Technology on 14 May 2026.
