Serdar Berdimuhamedov Opened New University Complexes Awarded International Certificates
September 1, Knowledge and Student Day, marked a significant event for Turkmenistan's education system. President Serdar Berdimuhamedov attended the opening ceremonies for new high-tech building complexes at two higher education institutions in the country: the Turkmen State Institute of Architecture and Construction (TSIAC) in Ashgabat and the Seyitnazar Seydi Turkmen State Pedagogical Institute (TSPI) in Turkmenabat. The opening of these facilities reflects the country's commitment to elevating science and education to a qualitatively new global level, training highly qualified personnel, and implementing advanced digital ecosystems.
The central venue for the festivities was the new TSIAC campus in the capital, built by a domestic company and member of the Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs of Turkmenistan. The institute’s architectural complex covers 32.2 hectares and is designed to accommodate 5,000 students. The façade of the three-story main building, which houses the administrative block, is adorned with a symbolic image of a compass and measuring instrument. The institute comprises eight faculties and 28 departments, a research library, a conference hall, and residential facilities: a 2,600-bed dormitory and two 40-apartment buildings for faculty.
As part of a unified ceremonial program, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov digitally launched the new complex of buildings of the Seyitnazar Seydi State Pedagogical Institute (TSPI) in Turkmenabat from the assembly hall of the Turkmen State Institute of Architecture and Construction (TSIAC). This campus, also built by a member of the Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (UIET), covers approximately 26 hectares and accommodates 5,000 students. The facility includes a five-story main building, eight faculties, 22 departments, six dormitories with 2,000 beds, a 1,000-seat cafeteria, and a specialized international-level sports complex. The pedagogical institute’s library collection can hold up to 1 million books, boasting a 700-seat reading room and an electronic library with 100 workstations. TSPI houses specialized laboratories in chemistry, biology, physics, and defectology, as well as museums of history, archeology, ethnography, flora, and fauna.
A special highlight of the celebrations was the unprecedented international recognition of the infrastructure and educational environment of the new campuses. TSIAC made history as the first university in Turkmenistan and the CIS to be certified according to five international ISO standards simultaneously. Marat Khabibulin, a representative of CERT International, presented the institute with certificates of compliance with ISO 9001:2015 (quality management), ISO 14001:2015 (environmental management), ISO 45001:2018 (occupational health and safety), ISO 21001:2018 (educational organization management), and ISO 27001:2022 (information security).
UNDP Resident Representative in Turkmenistan Narine Saakyan presented TSIAC with a package of six environmental and educational certificates: "green" certificates for energy efficiency, water-saving technologies, and youth engagement in sustainable energy, as well as specialized certificates in water resource management, energy efficiency monitoring, and professional skills development.
Furthermore, Kenworthy Tai Joseph, Managing Director of Certiport (a division of Pearson VUE), presented the institute with a CATC (Certiport Authorized Testing Center) certificate, entitling the institution to the status of an authorized international examination center for validating students' IT competencies according to global standards.
The S. Seydi Pedagogical Institute also received international awards. The higher school was awarded a Certificate from Naberezhnye Chelny State Pedagogical University for the implementation of innovative pedagogy, a Certificate from the "Contribution to the Future" Foundation for improving the quality of personnel training, a Certificate from UNICEF for the development of inclusive education, a Letter of Gratitude from the UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education, and an official Certificate of membership of TSPI in the International Association of UNESCO Universities.
During a tour of the TSIAC laboratory complex, the President of Turkmenistan was shown cutting-edge scientific and production equipment from leading global developers. The experimental laboratory for architecture and earthquake engineering features instruments from the Italian brands Moho and Sara Electronic Instruments for recording earthquakes and monitoring structural vibrations, high-precision surveying equipment from the Swiss company Leica, and equipment from the Turkish company UTES for testing concrete and paint coatings. Particular attention was paid to the operation of the Motion Systems PS-6TM-550 dynamic platform: on it, full-scale building models are subjected to the simulated vibrations of real earthquakes, and sensors on the supporting columns transmit data for 3D modeling of loads in real time.
The TSIAC Electromechanics Laboratory is equipped with Canadian CM LABS interactive simulators simulating 10 types of heavy construction equipment, Spanish Seabery Soldamatic AR simulators for high-precision welding training in a virtual environment, and a German Lucas Nülle system, including a CRK 11 Kuka industrial robot and a mechatronic station based on the Profinet protocol. The General Chemical Engineering Laboratory utilizes a Spectrocube X-ray fluorescence analyzer from the German company Spectro, which allows for the chemical composition of cement (elements Ca, Si, Fe, and Al) to be analyzed with an accuracy of particles smaller than 100 microns, as well as high-performance gas and liquid chromatographs for analyzing microliter volumes of mixtures.
At the end of the festive events, the keys to new vehicles were handed over to both higher education institutions on behalf of the President of Turkmenistan.
