On 8 January 2018, H.E. Mme. Yang Xiuping, Secretary-General of ASEAN-China Centre (ACC), delivered a lecture at the University of Sanya upon invitation and interacted with the faculties and students on ASEAN-China relations and practical cooperation. Mr. Zhu Qinfu, Assistant President of the University of Sanya, Mr. Tian Yanfu, Dean of Silk Road Business School, Mr. Zhang Jianguo, Party Secretary of Silk Road Business School, Mr. Pi Yonghua, Vice Dean of Silk Road Business School, Mr. Zhang Xuehai, Deputy Director of Information and Public Relations Division of ACC, and over 100 faculties and students from Silk Road Business School attended the event.

Secretary-General Yang Xiuping elaborated on the development of ASEAN and ASEAN-China relations, particularly the achievements of ASEAN-China practical cooperation. She stated that ASEAN countries and China are good neighbours. Since the establishment of dialogue relations in 1991 and strategic partnership in 2003, ASEAN-China relations have become the most dynamic and profound relationship that ASEAN has with its dialogue partners, and witnessed fruitful outcomes in various fields. At present, China has ushered in a new era. Based on ASEAN Community Vision 2025, ASEAN is pushing forward the building of community on a higher level. ASEAN–China relations are moving from a period of growth to a period of maturity. Both sides’ cooperation in various areas is brimming with vigor and vitality as well as embracing broader space.

Secretary-General Yang Xiuping stated that education cooperation is an important part of ASEAN-China relations. By the end of 2016, the mutual student mobility had exceeded 200,000. Both sides are working on the upgraded goal of double 100,000, namely 300,000 students’ mobility by 2025. China has set up 30 China-ASEAN Education and Training Centres. In addition, China has established 6 China Cultural Centres, 33 Confucius Institutes and 35 Confucius Classrooms in ASEAN countries, and launched ASEAN-China Silk Road Scholarship. In 2016, ASEAN and China jointly organized a series of events celebrating the ASEAN-China Year of Educational Exchanges. During the 10th China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week last year, both sides adopted Action Plan of Education Cooperation 2017-2020 that set the direction for bilateral education cooperation on the next stage, and China announced to provide no fewer than 20,000 China government scholarships to ten ASEAN countries in the next three years. At the 20th ASEAN-China Summit concluded in Manila last year, Chinese premier Li Keqiang proposed China-ASEAN Human Resource Development Program, and will invite 3,000 ASEAN visitors to China for study programs in 2018 on capacity building in economy and trade, agriculture, science and technology, education, culture, health, public administration and transport. All of these have opened up a new and broader space for both sides.

Secretary-General Yang Xiuping mentioned that education is a priority area of ACC’s work. Making full use of its strength, ACC serves as a bridge and bond linking the education institutions, and has facilitated around 450 MoUs between education institutions of both sides. ACC established ASEAN-China Language and Culture Education Base, ASEAN-China Language and Culture Centre, China-ASEAN Tourism Education Alliance, ASEAN-China Consortium for Cooperation in TVET, ASEAN-China Arts Colleges Alliance, Southeast Asia-China Education Research Network, and ASEAN-China Network for Cooperation and Exchanges among Engineering and Technology Universities, through which, ACC gives strong support to enhancing inter-university exchanges and cooperation. As the co-organizer, ACC was awarded the outstanding contributor during the 10th China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week. ACC also strongly supports youth exchanges by organizing summer camp, winter camp, youth forum, football match, Chinese language competition for ASEAN students, so as to cultivate more inheritors of ASEAN-China friendship.

Secretary-General Yang Xiuping cited that ACC has been actively supporting Hainan to strengthen its education exchanges and cooperation with ASEAN countries. Last April, ACC and Regional Centre for Higher Education and Development of Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization co-organized a mission to visit Hainan, and held ASEAN-China Seminar on Academic Research and Exchanges between Hainan and ASEAN, and visited 7 universities of Hainan including the University of Sanya, all of which pushed forward the docking between universities of both sides. Last November, ACC supported the University of Sanya to hold the first China-ASEAN Private Higher Education Development and Cooperation Forum, during which the University of Sanya signed the document on ASEAN-China private higher education cooperation and 14 MoUs with the participated ASEAN counterparts.

Secretary-General Yang Xiuping said that the University of Sanya is an outstanding representative of Chinese private universities. Over the past years since its inception, its comprehensive competitiveness has been continuously increased with fruitful outcomes. She hoped the University could seize the opportunity of the development of ASEAN-China relations, make full use of its strength and continuously enhance its exchanges and contacts with ASEAN countries, push the cooperation to be deeper and more substantial, so as to make great contribution to ASEAN-China people-to-people exchanges and in-depth and all-around development of bilateral relations. ACC would like to offer assistance as always.

After the lecture, Secretary-General Yang Xiuping met with Mr. Lu Dan, President of the University of Sanya, and discussed the implementation of the consensus reached by the first China-ASEAN Private Higher Education Development and Cooperation Forum.

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