Kick-off meeting of the Twinning project ENHANCE “Building an Excellency Network for Heightening Agricultural ecoNomic research and Education in Romania”

On January 26, 2016 at 9:00, at the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Bucharest a Kick-off Meeting marked the official launch of a new Twinning project in higher education. The project for “Building an Excellency Network for Heightening Agricultural ecoNomic research and Education in Romania” is a CSA (Coordination and Support Action) funded by the European Commission under the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme.
The Project Coordinator is the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine- Bucharest represented the Faculty of Economic Engineering in Agriculture and Rural Development.
The European partners are three extremely innovative and well-known Western institutions: University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Department of Economics and Social Sciences, Institute of Agricultural and Forestry Economics (BOKU) from Austria, the Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO) from Germany and the Federal Research Centre for Agriculture from Switzerland (AGROSCOPE).
This event focused on achieving visibility as it marked the official start of the project, as well as creating awareness of its objectives.
The welcome speeches were given by the Rector of USAMV, Mr. SorinCîmpeanu that expressed all his support for the project to be carried out with very good results, Mr. Tudor Prisecaru, the President of the National Authority for Scientific Research and Innovation that saluted and encouraged the idea of the Twinning project, andthe Vice-Rector, Mrs. Gina Fîntîneru who is the Project Leader.
The event was attended by the representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Representatives of Partners’ Embassies.
The main speakers were the Project Leader and the partners’ representatives. Mrs. Gina Fîntîneru presented the structure, the consortium and the main results to be achieved during the implementation of the project. In addition, in her speech, Mrs. Gina Fîntîneru highlighted the general objective of the project, i.e. to fully realize and to further develop the currently existing scientific potential of the agricultural economists of the USAMV, particularly with respect to quantitative methods like modelling, simulation, and econometrics, as well as mixed research methods like institutional economics. In order to improve the scientific quality of USAMV, the Project Coordinator along with the three Partners will develop the following activities: training sessions, research mobility programmes, individual exchanges and summer schools.
Furthermore, presentations were given by the representatives of the three partners, Mr. Stefan Mann from Agroscope, Switzerland, Mr. Thomas Herzfeld from IAMO, Germany and Mr. JochenKantelhardt from BOKU, Austria on the structure and main results of their Centers and on the main issues that will be improved in order to enhance the scientific quality of USAMV.
Members of the USAMV management and staff members of the Faculty of Management also attended the event, expressing their support for the Coordinator and the Project Members.

Further information:
University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine- Bucharest
Mrs. Gina Fîntîneru
www.enhance-project.ro

Kick-off meeting of the Twinning project ENHANCE “Building an Excellency Network for Heightening Agricultural ecoNomic research and Education in Romania”