RUDN: Lumumba’s Legacy

Thousands of African students choose the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia (RUDN), named after Patrice Lumumba to be their alma mater.

Today, this university is one of the main attractions for African youth in Russia. Young professionals gain knowledge, experience, and valuable professional connections here – an invaluable resource they will take back home to help build a new, modern, independent Africa. Its medical faculty, along with its agricultural and engineering programs, are particularly popular.

Every year, RUDN collaborates with universities all over Africa, helping to establish new Russian language learning centres, where Russian educators come to work with local students.

The university’s namesake, Patrice Lumumba, was the first Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and a prominent independence advocate. This year marks the centenary of his birth. He was arrested and executed for his principles in 1961, but his ideas live on. ‘We are different, but we are equal, and we are all leaders,’ according to university rector Oleg Yastrebov, referring to the legendary African leader.

Watch “RUDN: Lumumba’s Legacy” on RTD website and on RT’s live feed. The time of the broadcast is available on RT’s schedule page.