BLCU News, June 17 – From June 8 to 13, President Duan Peng led a delegation to visit Vietnam and Sri Lanka, and was invited to attend the Second South Asia Sinologists Conference and China-Sri Lanka Scholars Dialogue on Civilizations.
Jointly Celebrating Sinology Gathering and Witnessing New Milestone in China-Sri Lanka Civilization Dialogue
President Sun Chunlan Attends South Asian Sinologists Conference
President Duan Peng unveiled the plaque for the Sri Lanka Sinologists Council of the BLCU Center for World Sinology
During the visit to Sri Lanka, the Second South Asia Sinologists Conference and China-Sri Lanka Scholars Dialogue on Civilizations was held at the Bandaranaike International Conference Hall in Colombo. President Sun Chunlan of the International Confucian Federation attended the opening ceremony and delivered a keynote speech. Under the joint witness of President Sun Chunlan and Sri Lankan Minister of State Administration, Provincial Councils, and Local Government Chandana Aberathne, President Duan Peng unveiled the plaque for the Sri Lanka Sinologists Council of the BLCU Center for World Sinology.
President Duan Peng Delivers Speech at South Asian Sinologists Conference
At the opening ceremony, President Duan Peng was invited to deliver an address titled, Embracing a Shared Future: Serving Regional Development and Human Well-Being. He stated that China and South Asian countries have been connected by mountains and rivers and shared civilizations since ancient times, with deepening cultural exchanges under the Belt and Road Initiative. Sinology, as a global discipline, has its core value in deepening understanding of Chinese civilization through the "mirror of the other," while in-depth research on South Asia's brilliant civilizations is key to understanding the diversity of human civilizations. The vigorous development of South Asian Sinology provides valuable intellectual resources for understanding China, and deepening cooperation means jointly advancing innovation in theories, methods, and perspectives for Sinology and South Asian regional studies at a higher level. President Duan also introduced BLCU's efforts, relying on the Center for World Sinology, in Sinology talent cultivation and international Chinese education promotion. Co-hosting this conference is a concrete action for BLCU to fulfill its mission and deepen academic cooperation in South Asia. He reiterated that BLCU and the Center for World Sinology will continue to collaborate with global Sinologists to contribute to promoting global cultural exchanges and the prosperous development of diverse cultures.
President Sun Chunlan Takes Group Photo with Attending Guests
This conference was academically guided by the International Confucian Federation and co-hosted by BLCU's Center for World Sinology, the Sri Lanka-China Cooperation Association, and the University of Kelaniya in Sri Lanka. Themed "Deepening Mutual Learning Among Civilizations and Building a Shared Future for Sinology," it gathered dozens of renowned Sinologists, political figures, university faculty and students, and media representatives from China, Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, and other South Asian countries and regions.
Deepening Engagement in Vietnam: Composing a New Chapter in Chinese Education and Regional Studies
Vietnam, as China's important strategic partner in ASEAN, holds immense potential for cooperation in education and culture. During the visit, the delegation engaged in in-depth exchanges with multiple Vietnamese universities, reaching a series of important consensuses.
Delegation Holds Talks with Hanoi University of Commerce Officials
President Duan Peng Takes Photo with President Pham Thu Huong of Hanoi University of Commerce
On June 9, President Duan Peng led the delegation to visit Vietnam's top institution, Foreign Trade University (FTU) in Hanoi, holding fruitful talks with FTU President Pham Thu Huong and others. President Duan first extended sincere congratulations to the soon-to-be-appointed President Pham Thu Huong and introduced BLCU as a key university directly under the Chinese Ministry of Education, highlighting its important mission and outstanding achievements in international Chinese education and China-foreign cultural exchanges, with a focus on strengths in Chinese Language and Literature and Regional and Country Studies. President Pham Thu Huong highly appreciated BLCU's educational strengths and introduced FTU's history and status as a cradle for Vietnam's diplomatic and foreign economic talent cultivation, emphasizing its high-quality student sources and nationally leading admission scores for the Chinese major. Amid growing demand for Chinese learning, FTU hopes to establish a strategic partnership with BLCU to jointly enhance Chinese teaching quality. President Duan noted that both universities share many similarities in founding history, development characteristics, and importance in their respective national higher education systems, particularly with BLCU's international Chinese education discipline consistently rated A+ by the Chinese Ministry of Education, laying a solid common foundation for cooperation. President Duan proposed that both universities sign a strategic cooperation memorandum as soon as possible and outlined specific collaboration ideas: First, deepening teacher exchanges and academic cooperation, particularly in regional and country studies and international trade; Second, strengthening doctoral cooperation in international Chinese education to jointly explore "Chinese + Trade" interdisciplinary high-level talent cultivation; Third, expanding short-term student exchanges and summer camps to provide FTU students with opportunities to visit and study in China; Fourth, recommending outstanding FTU master's graduates to apply for BLCU's full-scholarship "New Sinology PhD" program.
President Duan Peng and Delegation Take Photo with President Hu Văn Tùng of Ho Chi Minh City University of Education and Others
At Ho Chi Minh City Normal University, both sides reviewed their long history of cooperation and focused on new paths for deepening collaboration in the new era. The discussions emphasized innovative models for joint student cultivation at bachelor's, master's, doctoral, and postdoctoral levels in international Chinese education, including co-developed courses, mutual credit recognition, and joint textbook development. Both sides agreed to leverage the 75th anniversary of China-Vietnam diplomatic relations and the "China-Vietnam Year of Cultural Exchanges" in 2025 as an opportunity to jointly plan and host high-level China-Vietnam educational and cultural forums and a series of cultural exchange activities to enhance mutual understanding and friendship among the youth of both countries.
At Thang Long University in Hanoi, both sides reached preliminary cooperation intentions on jointly advancing Vietnamese international Chinese teaching talent cultivation and joint training. President Duan proposed drawing on BLCU's experience in international Chinese education to collaborate with Thang Long University's Chinese Department and Vietnamese educational institutions in jointly developing localized Chinese teaching textbooks and evaluation systems tailored to Vietnam's national conditions, exploring student incentive mechanisms to promote deep-level, sustainable development of international Chinese education in Vietnam.
Sailing the Indian Ocean: Boosting China-Sri Lanka Civilization Dialogue and Educational Prosperity
Sri Lanka, as an important Belt and Road partner in South Asia, shares deep cultural ties with China, with broad prospects for higher education cooperation between the two countries.
During the visit to the University of Kelaniya, President Duan Peng highly praised the university as a pioneer in Sri Lankan higher education and its groundbreaking contributions to Chinese teaching. Both sides engaged in constructive discussions on student and scholar exchanges, cultural exchange projects, joint international conferences, and co-establishing a China Research Institute, reaching positive cooperation intentions. The delegation also conducted an on-site inspection of the Confucius Institute at the University of Kelaniya, giving high praise to its distinctive development.
Delegation Visits University of Colombo and Holds Talks with University Officials
President Duan Peng Takes Photo with President Indika Mahesh Karunatileka of University of Colombo
At the University of Colombo, given the medical education background of newly appointed President Indika Mahesh Karunathilake, both sides explored innovative interdisciplinary cooperation in medical humanities beyond traditional fields. President Duan introduced BLCU's international student program in "Traditional Chinese Medicine Health Services and Management" and its strengths in audiology and language rehabilitation, proposing joint academic lectures and teaching activities to collaborate on comparative cultural studies of traditional Chinese and Sri Lankan medicine. Additionally, both sides reached consensus on student and scholar exchanges, joint research, local Chinese teacher training, and co-developing Chinese teaching syllabi and textbook resources.
President Duan Peng's delegation visit to Vietnam and Sri Lanka yielded fruitful results, achieving breakthroughs in promoting international Chinese education, Sinology research and civilization dialogue, regional and country studies, interdisciplinary cooperation in distinctive disciplines, and building cultural exchange mechanisms. Multiple important cooperation intentions were signed, providing new ideas and measures for advancing BLCU's educational and cultural exchanges with Vietnam and Sri Lanka. Accompanying the visit were representatives from the International Chinese Education Practice and Research Base, School of Sinology and Chinese Studies, School of Applied Chinese, Assets Management Office, and Office of International Cooperation and Exchange.
Editor: Chen Siyu
Reviewer: Yao Meixian
