On August 1 2016, the "China-ASEAN University Presidents Cooperation Forum" themed “Collaborative Innovation: Win-win Cooperation” was held in Guiyang. This forum was one of the activities in the 9th China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week (CAECW) co-hosted by Guiyang University, under the support of ASEAN-China Centre(ACC), Southeast Asia Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), the Secretariat of the 9th CAECW and China-ASEAN Education Training Alliance.
More than one hundred university presidents from China and ASEAN attended the Forum. ACC Secretary-General H.E. Mme. Yang Xiuping, Vice Governor Chen Mingming of Guizhou Provincial People’s Government, Malaysia Ambassador to China Dato' Zainuddin Bin Yahya, Director of SEAMEO Secretariat Dr.Gatot Hari Priowirjanto, Mr. Zhang Xinsheng, President of the China Education Association for International Exchange and President of International Union for Conservation of Nature, Mr. Song Baoan, Vice President of Guizhou University attended and addressed the ceremony, respectively.
Secretary-General Yang said that education is the cornerstone of economic growth, social cohesion and cultural prosperity, university shoulders crucial responsibility on educating talents for our nations, and cultivating the successors of traditional friendship of ASEAN and China. Strengthening the exchanges and cooperation between the universities will contribute to social economic development, and enhance the people-to-people exchanges of both sides. She pointed that ACC has fully played its role as a bridge and facilitator, and has been working hand-in-hand with governments, regional partners and educational institutions to establish platforms and networks to pave the way for more exchanges between both sides. ACC would continue to work with the universities and relevant institutions of both sides to make new contribution to ASEAN-China education cooperation.
Vice Governor Chen Mingming of Guizhou Provincial People’s Government, Director of SEAMEO Secretariat Dr.Gatot Hari Priowirjanto appreciated the function of CAECW for its nine-year contribution in promoting mutual exchange and cooperation among universities.They stressed the significance of inter-scholastic cooperation and exchange under the new circumstances and would actively work with each other in order to enrich the approaches and contents of cooperation, thus, contribute to the ASEAN-China education cooperation.
The Forum had segments such as cooperation agreements signing ceremony and keynote speech. Guizhou University signed cooperation agreement with Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman(UTAR), Stamford International University, INTI International University College. Hainan Tropical Ocean University signed cooperation agreement with Eastern Asia University. Dr.Chantavit Sujatanond, Centre Director of SEAMEO Regional Centre for Higher Education and Development, Presidents and experts from 8 universities of China, Malaysia, Thailand and the United Kingdom made keynote speeches on the challenges of education development, globalization, collaborate innovation and cooperative education.