CHENNAI: Mark Van de Vreken, Consul-General of Belgium in Chennai, has invited students interested in pursuing higher education in medicine and pharmaceutical engineering to join Belgian universities.
Delivering the commencement address at the Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences (SIMATS) on Sunday, De Vreken highlighted Belgium’s primacy in manufacture of vaccines and emphasised Belgium’s commitment to medical sciences.
“We have a population of 11 million, which is probably less than the number of teachers you have in India,” he quipped, encouraging students to consider studying in the Central European country. He also congratulated SIMATS for on its four Guinness World Records related to health and wellness.
At the 11th convocation of Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, 1,313 students received their degrees from the medical, nursing, dentistry and physiotherapy streams. Eleven candidates were also awarded their doctorates.
Presenting the annual report, Vice-Chancellor Jawahar Nesan made mention of the institute’s non-academic endeavours such as the AATRAL Foundation, which provides financial assistance to women and children with curable cancer.
This initiative was lauded by De Vreken and Australian Trade Commissioner Munish Sharma, who was the chief guest at the afternoon session.