On September 6, 2024, the China-Africa-UNESCO High-Level Dialogue on Cooperation in Education and Cultural Heritage Protection was successfully held in Beijing, China. Mr. DING Xuexiang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and Vice Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, attended the opening ceremony and delivered a speech. The Dialogue aims to further deepen educational cooperation, promote cultural exchanges and mutual learning, and assist China and Africa in jointly advancing modernization and building an all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future for the new era. Over 460 participants attended the meeting, including government officials from China and African countries, heads of universities and vocational institutions, experts and scholars, and representatives of international organizations. The International Centre for Higher Education Innovation under the auspices of UNESCO (UNESCO-ICHEI) was invited to attend the event and deliver a thematic speech.

On-site photo of the Dialogue

Mr. DING Xuexiang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and Vice Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, delivered a speech

Mr. DING Xuexiang stated that education and cultural cooperation are important components of the China-Africa friendship and cooperation. In the new era, President XI Jinping has proposed major initiatives such as the China-Africa Cultural Cooperation Plan, Capacity Building Action, and Cultural Exchanges Projects, which have guided China-Africa education and cultural cooperation to achieve deeper and more practical progress, leading to a series of fruitful outcomes. The high-level dialogue featured two thematic events, focusing on "Dialogue on Education Cooperation" and "Dialogue on Cultural Heritage Protection Cooperation" respectively. The Welcome Remarks was moderated by Mr. CHEN Jie, Vice Minister of Education of the People's Republic of China and Director of the Chinese National Commission for UNESCO. Mr. HUAI Jinpeng, Minister of Education of the People's Republic of China, Ms. Stefania Giannini, Assistant Director-General for Education of UNESCO, and Dr. Monique Nsanzabaganwa, Deputy Chairman of the African Union Commission, attended the meeting and delivered remarks.

Mr. CHEN Jie, Vice Minister of Education of the People's Republic of China and Director of the Chinese National Commission for UNESCO

Mr. HUAI Jinpeng, Minister of Education of the People's Republic of China

Ms. Stefania Giannini Assistant Director-General for Education of UNESCO

Dr. Monique Nsanzabaganwa, Deputy Chairman of the African Union Commission

Prof. JIN Li, Director of UNESCO-ICHEI and Vice President of Southern University of Science and Technology, delivered a speech on Strengthening China-Africa Cooperation through Digital Empowerment in Higher Education during a panel discussion titled "Digital Education Transformation and Achievement of 2030 Education Goals in Africa". In his speech, he mentioned that to date, UNESCO-ICHEI has established partnerships with 67 HEIs from 17 countries in Africa. Through the ecosystem alliance of the International Institute of Online Education (IIOE), a series of practical cooperation has been carried out, including the IIOE National Centre initiative, digital competency building for university teachers and administrators, joint research, and Smart Classroom project in collaboration with SUSTech and enterprise partners. From 2022 to 2024, the IIOE learning platform's resources have served more than 8,500 teachers from 332 HEIs in 39 countries and regions in Africa. In addition, Prof. JIN Li introduced that the IIOE Micro-certification Project, which leverages the localized operational mechanisms of the IIOE National Centres, will strive to serve 35,000 African higher education professionals. He indicated that in the future, UNESCO-ICHEI will continue to pay attention to technological developments and introduce new initiatives. Through the global partnership network, UNESCO-ICHEI will promote in-depth cooperation in the areas of enhancement of digital and AI competencies for women in the higher education workforce in Africa, the formulation of relevant policies and initiatives, promotion of industry-university cooperation, and organization of Higher Education Digitalisation Pioneer Case Award so as to facilitate the digital transformation and sustainable development of HEIs in Africa.

Prof. JIN Li delivered a speech on Digital Education Transformation and Achievement of 2030 Education Goals in Africa

During the event, Prof. JIN Li was interviewed by China Central Television (CCTV), China Education Television (CETV), and China Global Television Network (CGTN). In alignment with President XI Jinping's keynote speech at the Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation on September 5, 2024, Prof. JIN Li outlined the achievements and future plans of cooperation among UNESCO-ICHEI, African countries, and HEIs in domains such as development cooperation, cultural exchanges, and industrial chain cooperation.

Prof. JIN Li was interviewed by CCTV

At the closing ceremony, the event released the Beijing Initiative on Collaborative Efforts for Education Development and Cultural Heritage Protection by China, Africa, and UNESCO, and launched the Project list of "China–Africa 100 Universities Cooperation Plan" supporting the UNESCO "Campus Africa" Programme. Additionally, important plans and initiatives were initiated, including the "Future of Africa — China-Africa Vocational Education Cooperation Plan Digital Resource Platform", the China-Africa Regional Development Center for "Chinese+TVET", the China-Africa Teacher Education Center, the China-Africa Regional Center for Digital Education Cooperation, the Science and Technology Backyard Africa Center, and the Research Center for China-Africa Dialogue among Civilizations, all aimed at strengthening China-Africa education cooperation through concrete actions. As a UNESCO Category 2 Centre focusing on higher education, UNESCO-ICHEI will continue to uphold UNESCO's global Priority Africa strategy, strengthen cooperation with higher education stakeholders in Africa in areas such as digital education and teacher education, promote quality teaching and learning, and narrow the skills gap to contribute towards the 2030 Agenda and beyond.