The 2023 HCH – International Education Cooperation Conference was grandly held on November 16 at East Lake International Conference Center in Wuhan. Guided by the Central Working Group on Overseas High-level Talent Introduction, the event was hosted by the People's Government of Hubei Province and the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council, organized by the Department of Education of Hubei Province, and co-organized by Hubei Education International Exchange Service Center and Wuhan Hyde Cambridge Education Consult & Services Co., Ltd.

The conference drew participants from overseas educational institutions across more than 20 countries and regions including the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia, with over 80 overseas delegates and more than 200 guests in attendance. Eight pairs of Hubei universities and overseas institutions signed agreements to advance Sino-foreign cooperative education programs at the event.  

1.      Zhou Qihong, Deputy Director of the Department of Education of Hubei Province, met with key distinguished guests at East Lake International Conference Center. He extended a warm welcome to all attendees and stated that Hubei will continuously strengthen and expand educational opening-up to fuel high-quality development of education.

2.      Zhou Qihong noted that confronted with new circumstances, challenges and opportunities, Hubei remains committed to opening-up, consistently expanding international exchanges and cooperation, and boosting the international influence, discourse power and contribution of its education sector. High-level educational opening-up will underpin high-quality educational development and provide solid support for building a province strong in education. He introduced that Hubei’s international education opening-up work has embraced new opportunities this year, yielding new progress in platform development and international exchanges. For instance, the Hubei sub-forum of the 2023 International Industry-University-Research Cooperation Conference was successfully hosted; Chinese and foreign universities, research institutes and high-tech enterprises have deepened collaborative ties; and all forms of international exchange activities have fully resumed.

1.  Bie Xiaozhu, Director of the General Office of the Secretariat of China Education Association for International Exchange, remarked that as a core platform for Hubei’s international educational exchange, the HCH International Education Cooperation Conference serves as a powerful driving force for advancing Hubei’s educational opening-up and high-quality educational development.

2.  Shao Zhixiang, Deputy Director of the United Front Work Department of the CPC Hubei Provincial Committee, said that the HCH Conference, having run for 22 sessions, has grown into a renowned international exchange brand of Hubei. The platform has greatly boosted multi-field exchanges and cooperation between Hubei and the rest of the world, lifted Hubei’s global image and influence, and elevated the scale and strength of Hubei’s opening-up drive.

3.  Tang Qizhu, Vice President of Wuhan University, stated that Wuhan University has always upheld academia as the foundation of its development, scholars as its driving force and students as its core mission. As the university prepares to mark its 130th anniversary, it adheres to the mission of serving the nation, society and humanity. The university eagerly anticipates sustained academic exchanges with world-famous universities and research institutions at home and abroad, and will work together to build Hubei into a national strategic stronghold for educational opening-up in Central China.

4.  Mr. Yudil Chatim (Li Jian), Education and Culture Counsellor of the Indonesian Embassy in China, delivered an address. He proposed deepened, closer cooperation between Chinese and Indonesian universities and institutions covering faculty and student exchanges, talent training, country and regional studies, and Chinese language promotion, to jointly cultivate more high-level international talents for both nations.

5.  Wuhan University of Science and Technology, a high-level university jointly built by Hubei Province and national ministries, a university under the National Midwestern University Infrastructure Capacity Building Project and a Hubei Double First-Class initiative university, has long adhered to an open, global-oriented schooling philosophy and accelerated high-level educational opening-up. Ma Teng, Vice President of the university, shared its experience in high-standard Sino-foreign cooperative education, international industry-university-research collaboration, global talent cultivation and the construction of international teaching pilot zones.

6.  Wu Mingfeng, President of Raffles College of Music Singapore, mentioned in his speech that the college is dedicated to advancing music education and broadening students’ global horizons, with a focus on tapping students’ potential and artistic talents. He expressed the hope that exchange and cooperation will empower more students to thrive in artistic fields in the new century.

7.  The University of Edinburgh, a world-leading institution, took part in the conference. Its representative Mrs. Francesca Catherine Coates voiced the university’s willingness to carry out cooperation with Hubei universities and research institutes in scientific research, education, student exchange and faculty training.

Mrs.Francesca Catherine Coates

8.  Wei Shaofeng, President of Wuhan Institute of Shipbuilding Technology, delivered a keynote speech themed "Sailing Forward with Vessels to Break New Ground for Vocational Education Opening-up", sharing the institute’s practices and explorations in internationalizing vocational education.

11. The HCH International Education Cooperation Conference has been held for seven consecutive sessions, facilitating partnerships between nearly 70 Chinese and foreign universities. It acts not only as a weathervane for international educational exchange and cooperation in Hubei Province, but also as a vital link and bridge connecting educational institutions worldwide.