A meeting of Moscow State Institute for International Relations (MGIMO) Board of Trustees chaired by the Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov took place at the House of Receptions of the Russian Foreign Ministry. Issues, discussed at the meeting, comprised innovation projects for MGIMO development and funding of the MGIMO Development Fund (endowment), created at the end of 2007. The meeting participants were informed that Vladimir Potanin and Alisher Usmanov, both members of the Board of Trustees, each contributed $5 mln to the Fund’s capital. From now onwards they will allocate at the end of each year a sum equivalent to all contributions, made by other donors during the year and that until the Fund’s capital reaches RUR 1bln.

This endowment will enable our university to dynamically introduce innovations to MGIMO academic activity, launch additional programs, upgrade university’s material and technical assets and educate specialists of a new quality level, said MGIMO rector Anatoly Torkunov.

MGIMO Development Fund is the first non-commercial organization in Russia being established with the aim of forming a purpose-oriented capital. The Fund was established under the auspices of the Russian Foreign Minister, Chairman of the MGIMO Board of Trustees Sergei Lavrov in accordance with the Federal law «On establishment and use of purpose-oriented capital of a non-commercial organization», which came into force in January 2007. The constitutors are the association of MGIMO graduates, MGIMO rector Anatoly Torkunov and President of the Interros Company Vladimir Potanin.