The 5th Annual Conference of the China Africa Vocational Education Cooperation Alliance and the International Seminar on China Africa Vocational Education were successfully held

The 5th Annual Conference of the China Africa (South) Vocational Education Cooperation Alliance and the International Seminar on the High Quality Development of China Africa Vocational Education were Successfully Held

Zhengzhou, People's Daily, July 1st (Reporter Shen Zhiyuan) - To promote cooperation in vocational education between China and Africa and enhance cultural exchanges between China and Africa, the 5th China Africa (South) Vocational Education Cooperation Alliance Annual Conference and the International Seminar on the High Quality Development of China Africa Vocational Education were held in Zhengzhou, Henan Province from June 28th to 30th, in a combination of offline and online methods.

This meeting is jointly organized by the China Foreign Cultural Exchange Center of the Ministry of Education, the Education and Training Agency of the South African Ministry of Higher Education, the Henan Provincial Department of Education, and the Henan Provincial Foreign Affairs Office. It is jointly organized by Zhengzhou Electric Power Higher Vocational College, Henan Provincial Foreign and Overseas Chinese Affairs Service Center, and the China Africa (South) Vocational Education Cooperation Alliance.

Jia Peng, Deputy Director of the Department of International Affairs of the Ministry of Education, Du Kewei, Director of the Chinese Foreign Cultural Exchange Center of the Ministry of Education, Zun Gu, Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Higher Education and Training of South Africa, Li Xudong, Education Counsellor of the Chinese Embassy in South Africa, Diao Yuhua, Deputy Director of the Department of Education of Henan Province, Li Bingbing, Deputy Director of the Foreign Affairs Office of the People's Government of Henan Province, Yang Yibo, Secretary of the Party Committee of Zhengzhou Electric Power College, and Yang Jianhua, President of Zhengzhou Electric Power College attended the meeting and delivered speeches. The meeting was chaired by Cao Diefeng, Deputy Director of the Sino foreign Cultural Exchange Center of the Ministry of Education.

Jia Peng, Deputy Director of the International Department of the Ministry of Education, pointed out in his speech that educational cooperation is an important component of cultural exchanges between China and Africa. With the joint efforts of the education authorities, local governments, and various schools at all levels, educational cooperation has achieved gratifying results, especially in the field of vocational education, showing broad prospects for cooperation. Through platforms such as the China Africa (South) Vocational Education Cooperation Alliance, both China and Africa have implemented South African students' study and internship programs in China, promoting the common development of China and Africa's economy and society. Facing the future, the Chinese Ministry of Education will promote a higher level of education opening up to the outside world and develop comprehensive and multi-level international exchanges between China and Africa. At the same time, it will, as always, support China Africa vocational education cooperation, promote China Africa vocational colleges to establish a long-term mechanism for exchange and cooperation, actively carry out practical work in various fields, constantly improve the innovative development level of integration of industry and education, and jointly promote the Digital transformation of vocational education.

In his speech, Du Kewei, director of the Center for People to People and Cultural Exchanges between China and Africa under the Ministry of Education, said that China and African countries have maintained close mutual visits, political mutual trust has been strengthened, economic and trade cooperation has flourished, and people to people and cultural exchanges have yielded fruitful results. Sino-African relations have entered a new era of building a closer community of shared destiny between China and Africa. In 2017, China and South Africa established a high-level people-to-people and cultural exchange mechanism, which was the first high-level people-to-people and cultural exchange mechanism established between China and African countries, playing an important leading and demonstration role in various fields of people-to-people and cultural exchanges between China and Africa. The China Foreign Cultural Exchange Center of the Ministry of Education will work with all parties to implement the humanistic exchange concept of "people-oriented, open and equal, respect and inclusiveness, understanding and appreciation, exchange and mutual learning, cooperation and win-win, upholding the correct concept of justice and benefit, and achieving sustainable development". We will fully support the development of the China Africa (South) Vocational Education Cooperation Alliance and fully play its important role in promoting education cooperation and cultural exchanges between China and Africa.

Zun Gu, Deputy Director General of the South African Ministry of Higher Education and Training, stated that in the past few years, the Chinese government has shared experiences and resources in promoting the progress and development of vocational education in South Africa, helping to cultivate a group of technical and skilled talents in South Africa. It is hoped that the two sides will take advantage of the great opportunity of Digital transformation to carry out in-depth exchanges and interactions around the themes of international cooperation and exchanges between China and South Africa in the post epidemic era, the construction of an international school running platform, the service of the "the Belt and Road" construction, and the promotion of teacher exchanges, and jointly implement bilateral and multilateral vocational education cooperation projects to promote people to people and cultural exchanges and people to people exchanges between China and Africa.

Li Xudong, Education Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in South Africa, stated that vocational education exchange and cooperation, as an important component of cultural exchanges between China and South Africa, have received high attention from the government and various sectors of society. Chinese vocational colleges and South African Chinese enterprises have made beneficial attempts in talent cultivation and training, cultivating urgently needed high-quality skilled talents for the local economic and social development of South Africa. I hope that the attending leaders and guests will focus on practical cooperation in vocational education between Central South and Central Africa. Focusing on issues such as the construction of modern vocational education systems, the cultivation of high-level skilled talents, and the realization of mutual benefit and win-win cooperation between schools and enterprises under the new situation, we will fully discuss, exchange experiences, and explore practical paths and solutions for the better development of vocational education in Central South and Central Africa, and make contributions to promoting the construction of a community with a shared future for China and Africa.

Diao Yuhua, Deputy Director of the Education Department of Henan Province, stated in his speech that in recent years, educational exchanges between Henan universities and African countries have been extensive and in-depth, with significant results. Henan universities have successively established overseas educational institutions with Central Plains characteristics in African countries such as Zambia, South Africa, and Ethiopia. Many students from African countries are also studying in Henan, and Henan has trained tens of thousands of localized and high-quality professional and technical talents for African countries. The holding of this meeting will open up broader development space for China Africa vocational education cooperation, provide talent reserves and support for China Africa cooperation, promote exchanges and mutual learning between Chinese and African civilizations, work together to build a "China Africa community of shared destiny" of mutual benefit, win-win results and common development, and help set an example for the construction of "the Belt and Road".

Li Bingbing, Deputy Director of the Foreign Affairs Office of the People's Government of Henan Province, said in his speech that in recent years, Henan has thoroughly implemented the "ten major cooperation plans", "eight major actions" and "nine projects" of the Forum on China–Africa Cooperation, giving full play to local advantages and characteristics, and helping to build a closer high-level community of shared destiny between China and Africa. I hope to take this meeting as an opportunity to promote the continuous construction of cooperation and exchange mechanisms among all parties, establish stable international cooperation relations, expand cooperation in multiple fields between Henan and Africa, support more Sino African vocational colleges and enterprises to establish cooperative relationships, deepen investment exchanges, promote project construction, and jointly promote the construction of a community with a shared future between China and Africa.

Yang Yibo, Secretary of the Party Committee of Zhengzhou Electric Power College, said that in recent years, Zhengzhou Electric Power College has actively responded to the initiative of jointly building the "the Belt and Road", continued to deepen international exchanges and cooperation, and created the brand of "Electric Power Silk Road College" overseas. As the new vice chairman unit of the Chinese side of the alliance, the school will continue to deepen international exchanges and cooperation in vocational education, especially in Sino African vocational education cooperation, and make due contributions to cultivating more international power technology skilled talents

At the keynote speech session, the Director of the Education and Training Agency of South Africa, Nsessi Nongbelluo, the President of CapricornTVETCollege, Mama Bolou Lagao, the Leader of the Skills Development Working Group of the BRICS Business Council (China), the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Organizing Committee of the the Belt and Road and BRICS Skills Development and Technological Innovation Competition, Liu Zhenying, the President of Zhengzhou Electric Power College, Tao Dawei, Vice President of Changzhou Institute of Information Technology, made exchange speeches around the theme of "new technology, new skills, new vocational education - Digital transformation of China Africa (South Africa) vocational education".

At the meeting, the President of CapricornTVETCollege in South Africa, Mamapolou Lago, and the President of Zhengzhou Electric Power College, Yang Jianhua, signed a memorandum of cooperation on behalf of the two schools. Du Kewei, Director of the China Foreign Cultural Exchange Center of the Ministry of Education, has awarded the Certificate of Joint Construction of the China Foreign Cultural Exchange Research Institute in the Power Industry to Zhengzhou Electric Power College.

The conferences were themed on "The Practical Path of Cross border Industry Education Integration in China Africa Vocational Education" and "Smart Education Empowers High Quality Development of China Africa Vocational Education", and two roundtable forums were also held. During the conference, a parallel sub forum on China South Energy, Electricity, Industry and Education Cooperation was also held at the same time.

Since its establishment, the China Africa (South) Vocational Education Cooperation Alliance has been committed to expanding the international cooperation perspective of its members in education, enhancing the awareness and ability of cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries, building a platform for China Africa (South) vocational education cooperation, and creating brand projects for South African students studying in China. At present, there are over 200 member units from both the central and southern sides of the alliance. The Alliance actively mobilized resources from all sides, jointly promoted the cooperation in vocational education between China and South Africa and between China and Africa, and made positive contributions to promoting people to people and cultural exchanges and people to people connections between China and Africa, and serving the construction of the "the Belt and Road" and the construction of a community of shared future between China and Africa.

Source: People's Daily