China, ASEAN record closer education cooperation

GUIYANG -- The number of Chinese students studying in ASEAN countries and students of ASEAN countries studying in China surpassed 175,000 in 2023, indicating that exchanges between the two sides' younger generations are becoming more active, according to sources at the ongoing 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in southwest China's Guizhou Province.

Shi Zhongjun, secretary-general of the ASEAN-China Center, said education is an important component of people-to-people exchanges between China and ASEAN, and talent is a crucial support for the development of China and ASEAN countries. In recent years, the two sides' education cooperation at all levels has grown, and personnel training and scientific and technological cooperation have achieved fruitful results.

The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week is being held from Aug. 20 to 25. More than 70 activities have been scheduled for this year's education cooperation week, the event's organizers said.

This year's event is co-hosted by China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Education, as well as the provincial government of Guizhou.

The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations.