On May 18th, the grand opening ceremony of the Confucius Institute jointly established by SCU-Renmin University of China-the Vrije Universiteit Brussel was held in Belgium. Vice-president Yan Shijing, authorized by Academician Xie Heping, president of SCU, attended the opening ceremony and delivered a speech on behalf of SCU. This is the fifth Confucius Institute established by SCU. It witnessed the achievements made under the high-level Sino-EU humanitarian dialogue mechanism, and the amiable cooperative relationship between China and Belgium.
The Confucius Institute, jointly founded by SCU, Renmin University of China and the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, will be dedicated to building a new research-oriented Confucius Institute. While promoting the Chinese culture and Chinese language, it will focus on studies of Chinese and European problems, and enhance talent cultivation on European problem studies. This opening ceremony was covered by Brussels TV station and local media.
During the visit, Yan Shijing, Vice-president of SCU and Jan Cornelis, Vice-president of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, entered into an agreement on a university-centered innovation platform for international cooperation (UCIP). The platform aims to build a multilevel and all-around innovation platform with social and economic influence on China and Brussels capital district, which will maintain the dominant role of universities and attract governments and enterprises of both sides to get involved. The platform will beef up international technical transformation, channel the mutual cooperation and actively explore the best way of interaction between Brussels and Chengdu in the high-tech business environment. Both sides discussed the cooperative items and reached agreement on the approaches to implement relevant issues.
SCU delegation also visited the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven and the Universiteit Gent. A cooperative agreement was signed between SCU and the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, under which both parties will enhance exchanges of students and teachers, and carry out students’ joint cultivation program. The SCU delegation had an in-depth discussion and reached agreement with Guido Van Huylenbroeck, the vice-president on international affairs of the Universiteit Gent, and relevant professors of the Universiteit Gent on the path of promoting students and teachers exchange in both universities under the agreement framework.
To enhance cooperation and exchange with universities in the countries along the “One Belt and One Road” and in eastern European countries, SCU delegation visited the University of Ljubljana--ranking top first in Slovenia, from May 20thto 21st. SCU delegation had a meeting with Prof. Ivan Svetlik, president of the University of Ljubljana and raised constructive proposals on developing cooperation between both sides. They also reached agreement on establishing cooperative relationship and enhancing long-term and short-term exchange and study of students, etc. It’s expected to enter a cooperative agreement at SCU this October.
People from the International Affairs Office and the School of Overseas Education of SCU also attended the aforementioned activities.
