The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Yunnan Normal University (YNNU) on 16 September to jointly establish the EdUHK–YNNU Joint Centre for Synergistic Innovation in South and Southeast Asia Education Development and Research (also known as the YNNU–EdUHK Joint Center for Synergistic Innovation in South and Southeast Asia Education Development and Research).
With a view to fostering educational and cultural exchange between Hong Kong and Yunnan, the two universities will jointly develop and launch multilingual educational materials specifically designed for Belt and Road countries, to facilitate their educational development.
Under the collaboration framework, the universities will release multilingual educational resources in Chinese, Burmese, Lao, Vietnamese, Khmer and Thai at different international conferences. These resources will be donated to education authorities of the respective nations as part of knowledge transfer initiatives.
A joint research team will be formed with experts drawn from both universities, to undertake projects focusing on the traditions of the ‘South-West Associated University’ and the ideal of ‘Consolidating the Sense of Community for the Chinese Nation’. The research findings will be translated, when applicable, into consultation reports, academic reports and proposals for the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, as references for governments at different levels and a wide array of stakeholders.
The partner institutions will jointly establish a database to promote educational development in Belt and Road countries, conduct research on education reforms in South and Southeast Asian countries and regions, with results and reports to be released annually. Both universities will take turns in hosting international conferences by bringing together local and overseas scholars.
Welcoming the signing of MOU with YNNU, EdUHK President Professor John Lee Chi-Kin said YNNU is highly regarded as a prestigious normal university with a rich history – being a base for Chinese language education under the State Council's Overseas Chinese Affairs Office and a national training base for international Chinese language educators.
Professor Lee said, “Through this collaboration, we aim to promote Chinese language education and culture with a wider and deeper reach, while enabling our faculty and students to deepen their understanding of education in South and Southeast Asia with a broadened perspective.”
YNNU President Professor Wang Deqiang said, “EdUHK is well-known for its culture of academic and professional development in education studies. As such, we look forward to building an educational research centre in Yunnan province for the South and Southeast Asia regions through our collaboration, to develop curriculum and teaching materials, research innovation, and exchange.”
