Ceremony marking the 30th anniversary of KulturKontakt Austria and the 10th anniversary of the OeAD-GmbH
To mark the 30th anniversary of KulturKontakt Austria (KKA) and the 10th anniversary of the OeAD-GmbH (Austrian Exchange Service) a large joint ceremony was held at Reaktor Wien on 18 November 2019. Iris Rauskala, federal minister of education, science and research, thanked the OeAD-GmbH and KulturKontakt Austria for their valuable work in education, science, research and culture and discussed the KKA association’s future direction and the OeAD-GmbH’s positioning as of 1 January 2020. As an organisation of the Republic of Austria the OeAD-GmbH will support the development of Austria as a centre of education and science with an expanded portfolio as of 1 January 2020. ‘With the integration of KulturKontakt Austria the OeAD-GmbH’s portfolio will be expanded and rounded off in the pre-tertiary sector and the OeAD-GmbH will strengthen its position as a centre of excellence for the development of educational innovations and international exchange along the entire education chain,’ said the education minister Iris Rauskala. ‘The added value lies in effectiveness: bundled offers for stakeholders in cultural and science education, adult education and the support of mobility and international cooperation contribute to this, as does a concerted, joint international presence with Austria’s diverse cooperation offers. This will strengthen Austria as a centre of education and science and Austria's international position.’
Jakob Calice, managing director of the OeAD-GmbH and director of KulturKontakt Austria, emphasised: ‘There are numerous points of contact between KulturKontakt Austria and the OeAD-GmbH’s fields of activity – both in international educational cooperation and in cultural education and science education.’ Ultimately, the merger of the two institutions will benefit not only the fields of work in the new large OeAD competence centre itself but also all of our partners."
At the grand celebration at Reaktor Wien more than 300 representatives of the ministries of education, vocational education and training agencies and chambers of commerce of South-Eastern Europe, the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research, the education authorities, vice chancellors and representatives of universities, universities of applied sciences and university colleges of teacher education, directors of art and cultural institutions, the Austrian Chamber of Commerce, the business community, the Austrian Development Agency and many other partners from science, research, education and culture exchanged ideas.