Aligned with its strategic vision to advance internationalization, elevate academic standards, and enhance graduate employability, the University of Garmian, through both the CDC and IRO directorates, participated in the RISE Project WP2 Consultative Workshop held virtually on 18–19 June 2025.

This academic forum, jointly organized by Sulaimani Polytechnic University and UNIMED – Mediterranean Universities Union, facilitated transnational collaboration between higher education institutions across the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and European counterparts.

The workshop’s primary objective centered on the formulation of strategic frameworks to enhance institutional internationalization and career development infrastructure within Kurdish academia, thereby reinforcing higher education's vital role in cultivating innovation, facilitating global academic networks, and equipping graduates for leadership positions in both regional and international labor markets.

The inaugural proceedings featured distinguished keynote presentations delivered by eminent scholars and diplomatic representatives, including Prof. Dr. Hoshyar Azeez (President, Sulaimani Polytechnic University), Dr. Tommaso Sansone (Consul of Italy in Erbil), and Prof. Dr. Mohammed Hussein Ahmed (Director General, Apparatus of Supervision and Quality Assurance, KRG Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research). Their scholarly contributions and policy insights substantiated the collective institutional commitment to strengthening multilateral academic cooperation and leveraging international partnerships to build institutional capacity within the Kurdistan higher education sector.

The subsequent working sessions transitioned to strategic implementation, during which academic partners from seven Kurdish universities engaged in rigorous deliberation with European counterparts to first conduct systematic analyses of structural impediments to graduate employability; second, delineate both collective and institution-specific strategic priorities for career services development; and third, build comprehensive internationalization frameworks.