The 2019 China-ASEAN Vocational Education Exhibition and Forum is held at Guangxi Polytechnic of Construction in Nanning on Sept 19. [Photo by Huang Xinyue/gxnews.com.cn]

The 2019 China-ASEAN Vocational Education Exhibition and Forum was inaugurated at Guangxi Polytechnic of Construction in Nanning, Guangxi on Sept 19 as one of the important event of the upcoming 16th China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO).

The exhibition and forum was co-sponsored by the Ministry of Education and the People's Government of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. More than 1,000 people attended the opening ceremony, including members of the 10 ASEAN countries, officials from relevant departments of the Ministry of Education, representatives from Hong Kong and Taiwan, representatives of relevant provinces and cities, vocational education experts, as well as invited representatives of enterprises.

The exhibition and forum aims to strengthen cooperation and exchanges in vocational education between China and ASEAN countries, promote the reform and development of vocational education in various countries, as well as help the construction of the Belt and Road.

Since Guangxi began hosting the China-ASEAN Vocational Education Exhibition and Forum in 2012, more than 700 foreign guests from over 200 universities and 20 ministers of ASEAN countries has participated in the event, signing more than 100 cooperation agreements.

In recent years, the Chinese government has been committed to building a China-ASEAN vocational education development community, continuously making new progress and achievements. The Guangxi government has built nine national level China-ASEAN vocational education talent training centers and an international education platform for studying abroad in Guangxi, promoted the establishment of the China-ASEAN University Think Tank Alliance, as well as established platforms like the China-ASEAN Border Vocational Education Alliance, the China-ASEAN Art University Alliance, and the China-ASEAN Tourism Education Alliance.

It has also launched events to help ASEAN countries and countries along the Belt and Road to train a large number of technical personnel, including setting up Chinese cultural centers in multiple ASEAN countries, building test stations for excellent varieties of crops, as well as opening various training schools.

To date, more than 39,000 students from ASEAN countries are studying in China, and thousands of volunteer international Chinese language teachers have been sent to teach in ASEAN countries and regions.