Union Education Minister Pralhad Joshi addressed the opening ceremony of the 13th BRICS Education Ministers’ Meeting in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, as India hosts the meeting under its BRICS Presidency.
Education Ministers and delegates from BRICS countries discussed ways to strengthen cooperation in education, with particular attention to traditional and indigenous knowledge systems and the development of inclusive, resilient and future-ready education systems.
Editorial Insight
Key Highlights
Important points readers should notice.
Pralhad Joshi addressed the 13th BRICS Education Ministers’ Meeting.
The meeting was held in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
India is hosting the meeting under its BRICS Presidency.
Delegates discussed the proposed BRICS Education Ministers’ Declaration.
Traditional and indigenous knowledge systems were a key area of discussion.
The meeting brought together Education Ministers and delegations from BRICS nations under the shared vision of “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability.”
According to the supplied SHABD report, meetings held on August 5 and 6 included detailed discussions on the proposed BRICS Education Ministers’ Declaration.
A key area of deliberation was the proposed BRICS Guiding Principles on Traditional and Indigenous Knowledge Systems.
Editorial Analysis
Why This Matters
Education cooperation can become an important part of India's wider BRICS engagement. The discussions provide an opportunity for participating countries to exchange experiences, strengthen educational institutions and explore collaborative approaches to emerging challenges. The inclusion of traditional and indigenous knowledge also adds a cultural dimension to the BRICS education agenda, connecting modern education with knowledge preserved by communities over generations.
Delegations exchanged perspectives and recommendations and worked towards building consensus on the proposed outcomes.
The discussions also reaffirmed the participating countries' commitment to strengthening institutional cooperation, capacity building and knowledge exchange.
Traditional Knowledge Takes Centre Stage
One of the notable elements of the meeting is the focus on traditional and indigenous knowledge systems.
The proposed guiding principles seek to place traditional knowledge within the broader conversation on education and knowledge-sharing among BRICS countries.
This is particularly significant for India, where traditional knowledge encompasses diverse systems, practices and community-based learning traditions.
Future-Ready Education
The BRICS discussions also focused on developing education systems capable of responding to changing economic, technological and social conditions.
The participating countries emphasised:
- Inclusive education
- Resilient education systems
- Innovation
- Institutional cooperation
- Capacity building
- Knowledge exchange
- Future-ready learning
