The law passed by the French Parliament in December last year was criticised by many including African students as it would make it impossible to waive non-European Union (EU) national tuition fees, which sharply increased in 2019.

However, Ms Khaiat said “you might have heard about a new immigration law in France, but I would like to point out that at the end nothing have changed for international students, which are not concerned by this law.”

She was speaking at the 6th France-Ghana Higher Educational Conference held at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) in Accra recently.
    

According to her, there were around 500 students currently studying in France, adding the country since 2018 had dawned a policy known as “Welcome to France”, aimed at attracting 500,0000 international students by 2027.

She further noted that the cost of studying in a public university in France was low compared to Anglo-Saxon countries, and offered more than 1,500 programmes that were taught in English.

The French Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Jules-Armand Aniambossou, urged Ghana to become a hub for innovation and Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Becoming an innovation and AI hub, Mr Aniambossou indicated that it would help improve various sectors of the country, including the health, agricultural, financial, and educational sectors.

Citing examples of two ongoing innovation and AI projects in Ghana, Mr Aniambossou said “Ghanaians are very brilliant. But what I want to say is that I would like this country (Ghana) to become a kind of hub for innovation and Artificial Intelligence because that is already leading our present and that will lead our future.”

According to him, France was an attractive place for students to study as they were assured of protection and solidarity, and therefore urged them to apply.

The French Ambassador noted that the conference was important as France was developing new partnerships with African countries, including Ghana based on equity, respect, and reciprocity as indicated by the President of France, Mr Emmanuel Macron, in 2017.

The Deputy Minister of Education, Rev John Ntim Fordjour, explained that the registration of over 1,500 participants underscored the robust participation from Ghana’s high education sector while expressing gratitude to the organisers for the mobilisation effort.

Dr Augustina Akonnor, Acting Deputy Director of GIMPA, thanked the French Embassy and Campus France for partnering with her outfit to host this year’s conference as it had a long-lasting relationship with higher educational institutions in France.

A student fair and the inauguration of a new Campus France office are some of the activities that will take place during the four-day conference.