On the afternoon of March 12th, the opening ceremony for the second cohort of the "Future Africa - China-Africa Vocational Education Cooperation Project - China-Africa Joint Training of Applied Talents" program was held in the 109-meeting room of the Liuxiandong Campus. The ceremony was attended by Xu Jianling, the President of theuniversity, heads of relevant departments, and 25 students from the National Institute of Technology of Côte d'Ivoire. The Vice President, Li Yue, presided over the ceremony.

During the ceremony, Xu Jianling introduced theuniversity and the project's basic information, as well as the situation related to the first cohort of students' study and life in Shenzhen. He mentioned that last year marked the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Côte d'Ivoire, elevating the bilateral relationship to a new level. Shenzhen Polytechnic will continue to broaden its cooperation with the National Institute of Technology of Côte d'Ivoire, enriching the content of cooperation and striving to create a benchmark for China-Africa vocational education cooperation, thereby adding new content to China-Africa friendly cooperation. He encouraged African students to study diligently and be strivers on the journey of youth; to exchange and learn from each other, serving as messengers of China-Africa cultural exchange; and to follow rules and disciplines, acting as guardians of a civilized campus.

Subsequently, Xie Lijuan, the Dean of the School of Construction, briefly introduced the School of Construction and the curriculum from four aspects: the school introduction, school-enterprise cooperation, educational achievements, and future development.

Emmanuel Kua, representing the students, expressed gratitude for the school's efforts in implementing the project and for their meticulous care. Although they are not the first cohort, he stated they would study hard to become the most outstanding group of students in the project. He expressed their determination with the Chinese proverb, "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."

The "Future Africa - China-Africa Joint Training of Applied Talents" program is a sub-project of the "China-Africa Vocational Education Cooperation Project," initiated by the Ministry of Education to promote exchanges and cooperation in the field of vocational education under the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. It aims to meet the demand for human resources in African countries at the initial stages of infrastructure construction and industrialization, focusing on urgently needed fields such as construction and mechanics. The program adopts a joint targeted training form by Chinese and African universities and Chinese-funded enterprises to cultivate specialized applied talents for Africa. Following a selection process,SZPU and the National Institute of Technology of Côte d'Ivoire became one of the first pilot institutions of this project, jointly training applied talents in the field of construction engineering. The project adopts a "1.5+1.5+0.5" cooperative education model, with students studying in Côte d'Ivoire and China for each phase and receiving diplomas from both schools upon graduation. The first cohort of 24 students came to our school for study in March 2023.

(International Exchange and Cooperation Office, Li Simin)