Ethiopia’s Young Nuclear Generation makes its mark on the global stage
By HER staff reporter
The fourth Obninsk NEW‑2026 International Youth Forum has concluded in Obninsk, Kaluga Region. The event focused on building a skilled workforce for the global nuclear power industry and was supported by Rosatom, the Government of the Kaluga Region, and the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI.
More than 700 participants from 85 countries took part in person, alongside high‑level delegations from 10 nations. Thousands more students joined online through 25 partner broadcasting platforms, making this year’s forum the largest to date.
The speaker line‑up underscored the forum’s growing international prestige. Attendees heard addresses from Director General of the IAEA Rafael Grossi, Director General of the World Nuclear Association Sama Bilbao y León, and Chairman of the Russian Government Mikhail Mishustin. A high‑level plenary session featured IAEA Deputy Director General Mikhail Chudakov, as well as heads of national nuclear agencies from partner countries, including Almasadam Satkaliev (Kazakhstan) and Azim Akhmedhadzhaev (Uzbekistan).
The programme was split into two parts. The morning sessions explored youth engagement: how young communities are reshaping the nuclear industry, what joint projects can emerge from international cooperation, and what role Obninsk could play in building a global network of young nuclear leaders. The afternoon was given over to expert panel discussions with representatives from various nuclear organisations.
The forum also welcomed the winners of the Atoms Empowering Africa video contest – a Rosatom educational initiative held in partnership with the BRICS Nuclear Platform. This year’s winners took part in Obninsk NEW 2026, combining participation in the forum with a specialised summer school for international students. Among the winners was Meron Mazenga Demesse from Ethiopia.
“I was particularly interested in how nuclear technologies can support development in areas important for Ethiopia, including energy, education and agriculture. The competition encouraged me to think about these challenges from a new perspective,” noted Meron Mazenga Demesse.
This focus on education naturally extends to the next generation of nuclear leaders. The Impact Team 2050 project is an international youth advisory council under the Director General of Rosatom, established in 2021 to facilitate dialogue between nuclear industry leadership and young leaders from around the world. Alexey Likhachev met with the new council members – young leaders from 13 countries, including Yohannes Bimrew Simegn from Ethiopia and representatives from Rwanda, Tanzania, South Africa, and other countries. They discussed ways to promote peaceful nuclear energy among young people and contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
“Our mission is to meet the global challenge of training qualified specialists for the nuclear industry. The world’s growing reliance on nuclear power requires not only new technologies, but also a robust international education system. In Obninsk – Russia’s first science city – we are building exactly that kind of open, modern, forward‑looking environment. The Obninsk Tech international education cluster is already taking shape here with IAEA support, and the agreements signed today will help us scale up Russian nuclear engineering education abroad,” emphasised Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev.
Tangible outcomes included two agreements signed in the presence of Rosatom, Minister of Science and Higher Education Valery Falkov, and Kaluga Region Governor Vladislav Shapsha. The documents are designed to promote Russian engineering education in nuclear technologies abroad and to give further momentum to the Obninsk Tech project, which is being developed with IAEA support.
