We see this as a new challenge for us as educators to be able to deliver a programme with an equal or even higher value as any face-to-face training course. Our main goal for this year is to make sure that every participants’ educational needs have been fully satisfied and that they return to their country as fully capable professionals with new and exciting ideas that they will share with their colleagues in Kazakhstan.
Dr Nunzianda Frascione, Forensic Biochemistry Research Group, King's Forensics
19 June 2020
King's Forensics broadens collaboration with Kazakhstan through online teaching and research
King’s Forensics is successfully continuing its long-lasting collaboration with the Ministry of Justice of Kazakhstan despite restrictions imposed by the current COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2016, the Forensic Biochemistry Research Group, within King's Forensics, led by Dr Nunzianda Frascione won a contract from the Government of Kazakhstan to help reform its justice sector. Since then, the team have been successfully running a new international bespoke programme, stemming from this collaboration between King’s and the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Kazakhstan. This programme was part of the global project known as the ‘Strengthening Forensic Capacity’ Project, led by Mr Yury Bikbaev, for the betterment of the country’s judicial system. This year, despite the current global pandemic, the team have launched a new edition of the programme with a new cohort of participants, while also expanding its original scope.
The new King’s-Bolashaq Programme in Forensic Science, Law and Intellectual Property welcomes 21 Kazakh professionals from a diverse range of forensic science backgrounds, as well as experts in international law and intellectual property, who are recipients of the Bolashaq International Scholarship. This prestigious grant allows the holders to further develop their skills at leading universities around the world.
The new group of participants will be able to enjoy the same quality and quantity of content delivered during the previous programme, thanks to additional support provided by King’s online learning technologies and services. This will allow Dr Frascione’s team to engage with the participants and guide them through their training. This also means that students will still have access to bespoke online lectures provided by leading UK forensic and legal professionals, building new bridges between expert communities in the UK and Kazakhstan.
The ongoing collaboration is part of long-term reforms undertaken by Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Justice to bring about systemic improvements. Jointly with the World Bank, it’s implementing the ‘Justice Sector Institutional Strengthening Project’ where King’s has been a consortium member since 2016 concentrating in enhancing forensics, namely through the ‘Strengthening Forensic Capacity’ part of the project.
It’s great to see our collaboration with the Ministry of Justice continue to expand. The majority of the current cohort are forensic experts, but with an important addition of top managers and senior professionals in intellectual property, international law and legislation which will widen the scope of ongoing reforms.
Yury Bikbaev, Project Leader, Strengthening Forensic Capacity Project
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Senior Lecturer in Forensic Science