HarISA - Harmonization and lnnovation in PhD Study Programs for Plant Health in Sustainable Agriculture

The Faculty of Agriculture and Food Technology University of Mostar has started implementing a significant educational project. The project called HarISA - Harmonization and lnnovation in PhD Study Programs for Plant Health in Sustainable Agriculture is important for modern sustainable agricultural production and comprehensive plant health care because it involves the development and application of sophisticated plant protection methods based on the latest scientific knowledge. Without highly educated experts who are well acquainted with the problems of all aspects of plant health in sustainable agricultural production, it is impossible to achieve these goals.

The HarISA project was approved under the Erasmus + program, and in the area of ​​ Capacity Building in Higher Education by the European Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). This project has the ambition to harmonize and modernize PhD education in the Western Balkans and to create a network of researchers capable of responding to current challenges in plant health. The project aims to support the modernization and internationalization of higher education in the field of plant health and to contribute to cooperation between the European Union and the countries of the Western Balkans in the implementation of European Union policy related to plant health. It also seeks to ensure the acquisition of scientific knowledge and the transfer of skills and competencies to achieve sustainable use of pesticides and the application of the principles of integrated plant protection in agricultural production.

The project was applied by the University of Zagreb - Faculty of Agriculture as a coordinator, in cooperation with partners from European Union countries: Croatia, Italy, Bulgaria and Greece and the so-called Western Balkan countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro and Albania.

The project will achieve specific objectives: to harmonize, improve and modernize PhD programs in the field of plant health among partner universities in order to increase the ability of PhDs to respond to global problems in plant health; develop a common framework and draft curriculum for an international joint doctoral study in plant health encourage regional integration in the field of plant health research and education within the countries of the Western Balkans and among the countries of the Western Balkans and the EU.