US Labor Secretary Marty Walsh (left) and Swiss President Guy Parmelin in Washington on November 18, 2021. The Swiss president has just completed a three-day visit to the US.
Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
The Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) and the US National Science Foundation (NSF) have signed a joint memorandum of understanding to boost future cooperation.
This content was published on
2 minutes
Keystone-SDA/sb
The deal was signed between the two research funding agencies on Friday in Washington on the occasion of Swiss President Guy Parmelin’s three-day visit to the United States. The aim is to help Swiss and US researchers carry out projects with partners in the respective countries.
“We are creating the basis for long-term cooperation between our two funding agencies,” said Matthias Egger, president of the Swiss National Research Council, in a statementExternal link.
As a first step to significantly reduce administrative work, Swiss and American researchers will only have to submit a single application for joint projects.
The SNSF has already concluded similar agreements with various countries within and outside Europe. The US is Switzerland’s largest research partner, participating in around 15% of publications by researchers in Switzerland. Since 2016, the SNSF has funded more than 5,000 projects in Switzerland that involve some form of collaboration with the US.
During his US visit Parmelin also agreed a declaration of intent to boost cooperation with the United States on vocational education and training.
The agreement signed on Thursday is valid for three years and signals “intensifying knowledge exchange between education stakeholders active in the public and private sectors” in both countries, the Swiss education ministry said in a statement.
Switzerland’s famed apprenticeship system is often held up as the “gold standard” in vocational training and is the number one choice for young people after they leave school. For some time now, the US has been looking at Switzerland’s system combining education with an apprenticeship at a host company.
Popular Stories
More
Culture
Wealth is not all: how gentrification in Zurich has led to housing shortage
Swiss press react to EU deal with mix of euphoria and scepticism
This content was published on
Swiss media reaction to the agreement between Switzerland and the EU varies widely. Some are celebrating, while others worry about what is to come.
Swiss Solidarity donations to tackle child abuse top CHF4 million
This content was published on
Swiss Solidarity, the humanitarian arm of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SBC), has raised over CHF4 million ($4.3 million) to tackle child abuse.
EU Commission president says Swiss-EU deal is ‘historic’ agreement
This content was published on
At a joint media conference with Swiss President Viola Amherd in Bern, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen spoke of a "day of joy".
Switzerland and EU reach deal on future bilateral relations
This content was published on
Switzerland and the European Union have announced a political agreement to update their trading relationship after almost a decade of difficult talks.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Swiss renew declaration on vocational training with US
This content was published on
Swiss President Guy Parmelin has signed a declaration to boost cooperation with the US on vocational education and training.
This content was published on
Switzerland’s president Guy Parmelin is to visit the United States to cement cooperation on vocational education and training (VET).
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.