On the morning of October 18, COHD’s opening ceremony for the international students 2019 was successfully held in the CIAD auditorium in the West Campus. Wang Yajie, Deputy Director of Project Management Office under the Training Center, Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), Zhang Zhichao, Deputy Director of CAU’s International Office and Gong Li, COHD’s Deputy Dean, attended the ceremony and delivered speeches. Liu Qing from Project Management Office under the Training Center, Ministry of Commerce, Wang Yanlei, COHD’s associate professor and General Coordinator of MOFCOM’s Foreign-aid Degree Program, together with student assistants, and 44 international students under the new “MOFCOM Postgraduate Program 2019-2021, “Beijing ‘Belt & Road Initiative’ National Talents Development Base Program” and the related programs sponsored by China Scholarship Council, such as “China-Africa 20+20 Cooperation Program” and “Silk Road Program”, attended the ceremony. Zheng Yuyang, Secretary of Foreign Affairs of COHD, presided over the ceremony. At the end, the head teacher of the 2019 MOFCOM class and the student assistants were awarded appointment certificates.
Zhang Zhichao, Deputy Director of International Cooperation and Exchange Office, delivered a speech. On behalf of CAU, he expressed sincere welcome to all international students and thanks to the Training Center of Ministry of Commerce for its support and trust. He briefly introduced CAU’s history, philosophy and development status of education and training for international students. In addition, he hoped that international students will cherish the opportunity to study in China, do a good planning on study, enjoy the comfortable study environment, and take advantage of various study resources to become the bridges and messengers of friendly exchanges between China and foreign countries, as well as to make contribution to the agricultural and social development of their countries.
Gong Li, Deputy Dean of COHD, expressed his sincere welcome to the students from 24 countries of the five continents, including Europe, South America, Africa, Oceania and Asia. He pointed out that it is of great significance for the college, the university and even the counties that such a host of international students could gather together to be on the campus with enthusiasm about study. He also believed that they will have an unforgettable time in the college that is full of humanistic care. Meanwhile, he introduced the basic picture of COHD to the international students in terms of disciplinary system, strengths of faculty, research achievements and management services, with emphasis on the highlights of COHD’s education and training for international students. He pointed out that the college will support the study and life of international students in China to the largest extent in all aspects. It would be in the ways of providing them with international horizon as well as the frontier research and management experience, and encouraging them to be actively involved in various featured academic activities represented by the ongoing “COHD Seminar Series on Critical Issues in Agrarian Development” and “AJE Young Scholar Exchanging Activity Series”. He expected that they can accumulate rich knowledge and learn from China’s development models and experience, and then apply the advanced approaches and achievements to the development of their own countries, thus to truly benefit their people and social development.
Wang Yajie, Deputy Director of Project Management Office under the Training Center, Ministry of Commerce, delivered a speech in the ceremony. On behalf of Ministry of Commerce, she expressed warm welcome to international students from different countries and expressed her gratitude to CAU for undertaking the Foreign-aid Degree Program. She said that the Ministry of Commerce Scholarship Program has accumulated valuable operation and management experience since 2008. She pointed out, the Chinese government has always regarded education and talent exchange as an important part of international cooperation and support for developing countries. To further strengthen exchanges and cooperation with other countries, and to cultivate more outstanding talents for developing countries, the cooperation between Ministry of Commerce and other countries and the coverage of Foreign-aid Degree Programs have been expanding. Finally, she hoped that international students can cherish the opportunity to study in China and apply their professional knowledge to the development of their own countries.
The international student Joyce Felistance Kaliwo and freshman representative Kapelieli Militoni Lanumata addressed separately. Joyce firstly thanked the teachers and students of CAU for their care and support to international students, then talked about her unforgettable experiences during the year in China. She said that the professors here are serious and responsible, who not only require international students to excel in their schoolwork, but also hope that they will contribute to national development after returning to their own countries. To demonstrate the idea that the classroom here is vivid and wonderful, she took the course of regional planning as an example to unveil the interactive and practical teaching mode. Besides, she said COHD also organized a variety of cultural activities, such as trips to historical and cultural attractions and the cross-cultural carnival series, all of which have enhanced mutual understanding and deepened their comprehension towards China’s rich and profound traditional cultures. Kapelieli made a speech after her. He expressed his gratitude to Ministry of Commerce and CAU for offering such an awesome opportunity to study in China.He said that as international students, their arrivals have brought different cultures, languages and values to the historical campus. He hoped that in the process of cultural exchanges, their thinking and knowledge will be enriched. In the mean time, he stated his aspiration of working hard to learn professional knowledge, and making suggestions for the development of his country and the progress of his people. He lastly pointed out that learning is also a process of cooperation, and the international students themselves should help each other and grow together.
At the end of the ceremony, the guests present awarded appointment letters to the head teacher of the 2019 MOFCOM class and the student assistants. It is expected that through such a ritual, their management and service consciousness towards international students will be enhanced, and the job will be done subject to a series of high standards.
The opening ceremony was successfully concluded with a cozy group photo of all the guests, teachers and students present. Through this opening ceremony, international students have a deeper understanding of the humanistic spirit and development goals of COHD. Meanwhile, they have a more concrete comprehension towards COHD’s international education and training strengths. It has further enhanced their acknowledgement and sense of belongingtowards the college, and set the foundation and clear directions for their future study and life planning in China.
