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1. The Contracting States intend to contribute through their joint action both to the promotion of the active co-operation of all the countries of the Europe Region in the cause of peace and international understanding, and to the development of more effective collaboration with other Member States of Unesco with regard to a better use of their educational, technological and scientific potential.
2. The Contracting States solemnly declare their firm resolve to co-operate closely within the framework of their legislation and constitutional structures, as well as within the framework of existing intergovernmental agreements, with a view to:
(a) Enabling, in the interest of the Contracting States, and consistent with their general policy for educational provision and administrative procedures, the best use of their available education and research resources, and for this purpose: (i) to make their higher educational institutions as widely accessible as possible to students or researchers from any of the Contracting States;
(ii) to recognize the studies, certificates, diplomas and degrees of such persons;
(iii) to examine the possibility of elaborating and adopting similar terminology and evaluation criteria which would facilitate the application of a system which will ensure the comparability of credits, subjects of study and certificates, diplomas and degrees;
(iv) to adopt a dynamic approach in matters of admission to further stages of study, bearing in mind knowledge acquired, as attested by certificates, diplomas and degrees, and also the individual's other relevant qualifications, so far as these may be deemed acceptable by competent authorities;
(v) to adopt flexible criteria for the evaluation of partial studies, based on the educational level reached and on the content of the courses taken, bearing in mind the interdisciplinary character of knowledge at the higher educational level;
(vi) to improve the system for the exchange of information regarding the recognition of studies, certificates, diplomas and degrees;
(i) to make their higher educational institutions as widely accessible as possible to students or researchers from any of the Contracting States;
(ii) to recognize the studies, certificates, diplomas and degrees of such persons;
(iii) to examine the possibility of elaborating and adopting similar terminology and evaluation criteria which would facilitate the application of a system which will ensure the comparability of credits, subjects of study and certificates, diplomas and degrees;
(iv) to adopt a dynamic approach in matters of admission to further stages of study, bearing in mind knowledge acquired, as attested by certificates, diplomas and degrees, and also the individual's other relevant qualifications, so far as these may be deemed acceptable by competent authorities;
(v) to adopt flexible criteria for the evaluation of partial studies, based on the educational level reached and on the content of the courses taken, bearing in mind the interdisciplinary character of knowledge at the higher educational level;
(vi) to improve the system for the exchange of information regarding the recognition of studies, certificates, diplomas and degrees;
(b) Constantly improving curricula in the Contracting States and methods of planning and promoting higher education, on the basis of not only the requirements for economic, social and cultural development, the policies of each country and also the objectives that are set out in the recommendations made by the competent organs of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization concerning the continuous improvement of the quality of education, the promotion of lifelong education and the democratization of education, but also the aims of the full development of the human personality and of understanding, tolerance and friendship among nations and in general all aims concerning human rights assigned to education by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations International Covenants on Human Rights and the Unesco Convention Against Discrimination in Education.
(c) Promoting regional and world-wide co-operation for the solution of the “problems of comparison and equivalence between academic degrees and diplomas”... as well as for recognition of studies and academic diplomas.
3. The Contracting States agree to take all feasible steps at the national, bilateral and multilateral levels, in particular by means of bilateral, subregional, regional or other agreements, arrangements between universities or other higher educational institutions and arrangements with the competent national or international organizations and other bodies, with a view to the progressive attainment by the competent authorities concerned of the goals defined in the present article.