On September 24, the four-day Sixth China-Arab States Expo (hereinafter as “the Expo”) successfully concluded in Yinchuan, Ningxia. Prof. Li Ming, Director of International Centre for Higher Education Innovation under the auspices of UNESCO (hereinafter as “UNESCO-ICHEI”), was invited to attend and deliver a keynote speech titled "New Areas of Cooperation between China-Arab States through Digital Transformation of Higher Education" at the opening ceremony of Online Silk Road Conference on September 21st. He was also invited by Ningxia University to the unveiling ceremony of China-Arab University Alliance Exchange Mechanism Research Institute on September 22nd. Mr. Sit Fung, Chief of International Institute of Online Education Management Centre (herein after as "the IIOE Management Centre), and Ms. Su Rui, Deputy Chief of the office, accompanied.

The Expo was born in conjunction with the "Belt and Road" initiative and has become an important channel for cooperation between China and Arab states. This Expo focuses on economic and trade cooperation, involving clean energy, modern agriculture, digital economy and other fields. During the expo, Online Silk Road Conference was specially set up to build a platform to explore and jointly build a digital Silk Road based on the "Belt and Road" initiative, promote the construction of a community with a shared future in cyberspace, and seek more convergence point of various concerns for all countries.

Digital transformation of higher education as a new channel for China-Arab exchange

Prof. Li Ming pointed out in his keynote speech that the COVID-19 epidemic has intensified the economic vulnerability of Arab states, leading to the introduction of digital economic strategies and priortization of higher education digital transformation so as to cultivate talents to serve the future economy.This is in line with China’s "Digital China Strategy" and there is huge room for cooperation in the fields of institutions, enterprises and industries. He also shared from the standpoint of UNESCO-ICHEI on potential opportunities of collaboration.

Relying on IIOE's partner network and national center mechanism, UNESCO-ICHEI has established smart classrooms in developing countries through philanthrophic collaboration with Chinese education technology companies, built IIOE – an open digital learning platform that supports UN’s six official languages with the help of enterprises such as Wisdom House, and offered a series of teacher professional development and micro-certification programs on digitial competencies among Arab states and “Belt and Road” initiative countries. Specifically, he highlighted the fruitful outcomes achieved through collaboration with Ain Shams University and the IIOE National Centre in Egypt. Through this network and micro-certification programs, UNESCO-ICHEI provided partner institutes and enterprises with opportunities to engage in international projects, enhance their international visibility and competitiveness, as well as promote active exchange among Arab states. In terms of joint research, UNESCO-ICHEI partnered with ALECSO to launch a research project on the digital teaching transformation of higher education in 10 Arab states, aiming to gain an in-depth understanding of the status quo of universities in the region and explore opportunities for cooperation. In the end, Prof. Li Ming extended an invitation to the guests, hoping that all parties could join hands with UNESCO-ICHEI to pay more attention to the integration of artificial intelligence in higher education, focus on the transformative role of artificial intelligence, and participate in international discussions on formulating relevant cases, norms and standards.

After the meeting, UNESCO-ICHEI delegation met with Mr. Sharif Youssef Ahmed Saleh (third from left), Deputy Minister of Higher Education of Egypt, and Mr. Sawi Sawi (second from right), Chairman of the Egypt-China Culture and Technology Association , Mr. Mundou Nassef, Dean of the Faculty of Liberal Arts of Tanta University in Egypt and other guests. The guests expressed congratulations and high recognition of the achievements of UNESCO-ICHEI.

The unveiling ceremony of the China-Arab University Alliance Exchange Mechanism Research Institute

On the afternoon of September 22, invited by Prof. Li Shaoxian, Dean of the China Institute of Arab Studies at Ningxia University, to attend and witness the unveiling ceremony for the establishment of the China-Arab University Alliance Exchange Mechanism Research Institute (hereinafter as “the Institute). This signals a new beginning for dialogues between China and Arab states in the field of education, especially on the quality of higher education to provide talents to deepen China-Arab states collaboration. It is expected that the Institute can make good use of the resources from the Expo to innovate its mechanism and structure, gather innovative elements such as knowledge, technology, and talents, and provide decision-making consultation for the transformation of China-Arab economic structure and industrial upgrading. UNESCO-ICHEI looks forward to deepening friendly exchanges and practical cooperation in the field of higher education with the Institute.

According to statistics, 78 domestic and foreign academicians and experts, more than 30 business associations, and 1,495 companies participated in this year's Expo, of which 82% were from the industries, enterprises, and business associations. The content of this expo covers a wide range of fields, ranging from traditional fields such as commerce, energy, and agriculture, to new areas of cooperation such as digital economy, medical health, and smart weather.