Canadian universities build ties with India

By Paul Davidson
President and CEO
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada

This op-ed was published in the Vancouver Sun on October 27, 2010

Canadians are going to hear a lot about India in the coming months.

That’s partly because 2011 has been designated the Year of India in Canada, and we’re going to be exposed to Indian culture like never before through performances, exhibitions, film festivals, food festivals and other events and activities. In tandem with that, we’re also going to be hearing a lot about India as a new economic partner, and the tremendous potential for mutually beneficial partnerships between our two countries.

It is in that context that the largest delegation of Canadian university presidents ever to travel abroad (and the largest delegation of university presidents ever welcomed by India) undertakes a seven-day mission in India this November. The visit, organized by the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada, includes 15 presidents from universities across Canada. The goal of the mission is to find new ways for Canadian and Indian universities to work together, while at the same time creating awareness of Canada’s “brand” in India.

It’s hard to exaggerate how far India has come in the last 20 years.

Characterized as an unparalleled innovation hub and an emerging economic powerhouse, India achieved average real growth of almost nine per cent per year from 2003 to 2007. Even in 2009′s recession, according to Canada’s Export Development Corp., the country’s economy grew by six per cent in the final quarter. Over the next decade, the Indian government expects that 1,400 new post-secondary institutions will be created, to serve seven million more students.

India has recognized it can’t do this alone and the country is inviting more international partnerships. Canada has signalled that it is willing to take up the challenge. Last June, as part of the G20 Summit held in Toronto, Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in higher education.

Canada’s internationally ranked universities have a lot to offer the Indian higher education sector. Canadian universities perform more than one-third of the country’s research and contribute billions of dollars to the Canadian economy. Across Canada and every day, research institutes are being established and world-renowned research teams are setting up shop. Research in health, nanotechnology, high-performance computing and film animation, for example, is exploding.

Given India’s potential, we have to be mindful of the fact other countries are also sounding out partnerships. One of the goals of the visit is to establish Canada’s profile in India. We have to let people know that Canada stands for excellence in higher education and research, especially in fields of interest to India.

Canada has much to work with in seeking new partnerships with India: strong cultural links; thriving high-tech companies; a strong university research system; natural resource strengths; and a multicultural society and workforce. We are also both geographically large and ethnically diverse federations, democracies, and members of the Commonwealth using the Westminster parliamentary system. We have in common the English language. Canada is home to over a million people of Indian origin. There are already several well-established Indo-Canadian academic partnerships. Increasing Canadian universities’ contribution to India’s higher-education sector will do much to enhance Canada’s profile and social and economic leadership in the world.

Harper noted in a speech in Toronto earlier this year that the economies of Canada and India “complement each other in so many ways that the low level of trade between us seems unnatural.”

He added: “That’s something we must change. … The road to the future for both India and Canada could carry much more traffic, if we continue to work on building the bridges.” This mission of Canadian university presidents is a step in that direction.