IIT-Madras' Zanzibar campus to be inaugurated in early November: Union Education Minister

The Indian government is all set to establish the first-ever IIT campus outside India. The Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has confirmed that the IIT Madras- Zanzibar campus will be inaugurated in early November in Zanzibar. The minister made the announcement at an event to confer an honorary doctorate by Jawaharlal Nehru University on Tanzania President Samia Suluhu Hassan.

While expressing his feelings, the minister said, “I am happy that the first offshore campus of any IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) is being set up in Zanzibar. I am told that IIT-Madras’ Zanzibar campus is scheduled to be inaugurated early next month,” the minister said.

“This institute will prove to be a milestone in educational cooperation between two nations and continents by providing students from Tanzania and other African countries access to world-class engineering and technology education, which will help in nation-building and



drive economic growth, technology, development and research and innovation in Africa,” Pradhan added.

Prof. Preeti Aghalayam is now in charge of the campus in Zanzibar, who was previously serving as a professor in the IIT Madras Department of Chemical Engineering.

IIT Madras Zanzibar campus will offer two full-time courses including a four-year Bachelor of Science in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence and a two-year Master of Technology in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence. The selection of the students will be based on their eligibility and qualifications.

Students will get several opportunities during their course of study including study abroad and semester exchange programs with partner universities of IITM in the UK and Australia, among other nations, internships with various relevant businesses, and the chance to complete some course requirements at the IIT Madras campus in Chennai, India.