On 24 February 2017, H.E. Mme. Yang Xiuping, Secretary-General of ASEAN-China Centre (ACC), met with Prof. Lu Dan, President of Sanya University (SU), and exchanged views on collaborations between SU and universities of ASEAN countries during her visit to SU. Ms. Che Yi, Vice President of SU, Mr. Tian Yanfu, Dean of SU Silk Road Business School, Ms. Zhang Yuhong, Dean of SU International Hospitality Management School, Mr. Chai Yong, Vice Dean of SU Tourism Management School, Ms. Cao Yanwei, Vice Director of SU International Department, Mr. Zhang Xuehai, Deputy Director of Information and Public Relations Division of ACC, and Ms. Zhang Jing, Education Officer of ACC, attended the meeting.

President Lu Dan introduced SU’s educational philosophy and overall development. He said that as a private university supported by Geely Holding Group, SU has made continuous efforts to build itself into “the most outstanding representative of high-level private universities”. It follows closely the international trend, adopts a forward-looking and innovative approach, meets the needs of the society, encourages entrepreneurship and takes international cooperation as an important way for its development. SU has co-established the Silk Road Business School with the International Cooperation Centre of the National Development and Reform Commission of China, and also jointly run undergraduate programme on hotel management with Niels Brock Copenhagen Business College in Denmark. SU also founded Sanya University Public Diplomacy Research Centre, and forged ahead to carry out cooperation with several prestigious universities around the world and enrolled international students since 2011. With the founding of Silk Road Business School, President Lu Dan aimed to strengthen educational exchanges and cooperation with ASEAN countries and made new progress in student enrollment from ASEAN countries and joint training programmes. He looked forward to continued support from ACC which is an important platform for promoting bilateral people-to-people exchanges and developing practical cooperation.

Secretary-General Yang Xiuping briefed on ACC’s mandate, mission and achievements, and spoke highly of the contributions made by SU to ASEAN-China relations. She expressed that 2017 is the 50th anniversary of ASEAN and ASEAN-China Year of Tourism Cooperation. She hoped SU could seize this opportunity and fully play its advantages to further carry out cooperation and exchanges on education, tourism and culture between China and ASEAN countries. ACC will work closely with its partners, including Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization, to build more and better platforms for ASEAN-China universities, including Sanya University, via practical cooperation, such as study tour, exchange and training programmes to promote the implementation of the “Double 100,000 Student Mobility Plan” and also boost in-depth development of ASEAN-China educational cooperation.

Secretary-General Yang also visited SU’s library and International Hospitality Management School, and interacted with teachers and students in Silk Road Business School. SU’s students have shown their interest in the relationship between China and ASEAN countries, and are eager to know more about the future development of ASEAN and ASEAN-China relations. Secretary-General Yang encouraged the students to cherish the time and study hard in order to lay a solid foundation in their future contribution to national development and in-depth development of ASEAN-China relations.