New Indian-South Africa 'academic bridge' launched

Indian High Commissioner Virendra Gupta has launched a new academic programme here under which unemployed South African youths can benefit from internships in India.
The programme establishes a new 'academic bridge' between the two countries under a partnership between Siva Sivani Institute of Management (SSIM) of Hyderabad and Ubuntu Institute of South Africa (Ubuntu).
Sailesh Sampathy, CEO of SSIM, and Prince Cedza Dlamini, CEO of Ubuntu, sealed the partnership agreement, explaining that the venture will be an educational outreach programme which will initially focus on the hospitality and agriculture sectors, through ICRISAT and Taj Group of India.
The programme will be expanded with support from Indian corporates, with the objective of expanding it to southern Africa as well.

Gupta said the new venture would further increase the historical links between South Africa and India and take further the vision and contributions of both Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela.
"We cannot emphasise enough the importance of Human Resource Development as an important aspect for the overall development of the people," Gupta said.

"This academic bridge will add one more important dimension in the ever-growing, friendly relations between India and South Africa and promote South-South co-operation."
S P Sampathy's Siva Sivani Institute of Management is promoted by the Siva Sivani Group of Educational Institutions, which has been running internationally renowned Siva Sivani Public Schools for more than four decades.

The Ubuntu Institute is a leading social enterprise in Southern Africa with both non-profit and profit divisions.
The non-profit arm focuses on five of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDG's); Education, HIV/AIDS, Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women, Economic Development and Entrepreneurship and Environmental sustainability.