On 26 August 2020, the 2020 China-ASEAN Vocational Education Forum, co-hosted by China Education Association for International Exchange (CEAIE) and ASEAN-China Centre (ACC), was held online. Dr. Liu Limin, President of CEAIE, Mr. Chen Dehai, Secretary-General of ACC, Mr. Fang Jun Deputy Director-General of Department of International Cooperation and Exchanges of Ministry of Education (MOE) of China, and Mr. Yok Sothi, Director of the National Institute of Technical Training of Cambodia, attended and addressed the opening ceremony. Mr. Xie Li, Deputy Director-General of the Department of Vocational Education and Adult Education of MOE, delivered a keynote speech.
CEAIE President Liu Limin stressed that ASEAN countries and China should take this forum as an opportunity to focus on planning and reshaping international production capacity cooperation, take into account the demands of local development and each country’s unique advantages, and jointly explore new models for education cooperation in the context of regular epidemic prevention and control, in a bid to create more new brands and highlights for vocational education cooperation.
Deputy Director-General Fang Jun pointed out that the Ministry of Education of China is willing to work with its counterparts from ASEAN countries to seek consensus and win-win cooperation in the new normal, and jointly build long-term mechanisms for vocational education exchange and cooperation in the post-epidemic era. Director Yorke Sotti called on the ASEAN Member States and their Chinese counterparts to jointly develop effective measures to cope with potential changes in vocational education and adapt to the needs of industry development.
Secretary-General Chen Dehai mentioned that vocational education is an important component of the national education system and human resources development, as well as a fresh driving force for regional economic development. In the post-epidemic era, China and ASEAN countries share the same urgent demand for stabilizing the existing industrial and supply chain systems and reshaping their structure. There would be broader space for cooperation in vocational education. He stated that the two sides should make full use of the platform of the China-ASEAN Vocational Education Joint Exhibition and Forum to promote education-industry integration and harmonize standards so as to elevate the cooperation in vocational education to a new level.
During the forum, representatives of Chinese and ASEAN institutions shared their experiences in international cooperation, presented their achievements and jointly planned for a bright future of China-ASEAN community for vocational education.