BLCU News, June 26 (Correspondent Geng Cong, Photographer Wei Da) – On the morning of June 20, President Duan Peng met with Malaysian Deputy Minister of Education Wong Kah Woh and his delegation at the university. Accompanying the deputy minister were 15 government officials, including Deputy Director-General of the Malaysian Ministry of Education Mohamad Azam, Director of the Publishing Department at the Institute of Translation and Books Hairul Nizam Muhammad Yunus, and Education Counselor at the Malaysian Embassy in China Muhammad Sharihuddin.
President Duan Peng extended a warm welcome to the Malaysian Ministry of Education delegation. He noted that since its founding, the university has trained 300,000 international alumni proficient in Chinese and familiar with Chinese culture, including nearly 5,000 Malaysian students and over 80 distinguished foreign dignitaries. President Duan introduced the university's rapid recent development, highlighting its three overseas branches in Kazakhstan, Thailand, and Japan, and its leading position in China in fields such as Chinese Language and Literature, Sinology and Chinese Studies, Language Sciences, and Regional and Country Studies. As a key window for China's foreign language education and cultural exchanges, BLCU places high importance on cooperation with Malaysia in Chinese education and cultural dissemination, hoping to strengthen ties with Malaysian universities to jointly promote China-Malaysia educational development.
Deputy Minister Wong Kah Woh expressed sincere gratitude for BLCU's warm reception and highly praised the university's outstanding achievements in international Chinese education. He emphasized that Malaysia has always placed great strategic importance on the development of Chinese education and the translation and reading of foreign classics. As a cultural cooperation project under the Belt and Road Initiative framework, China and Malaysia have signed the *Memorandum on Mutual Translation and Publication of Classic Works* to promote the translation and dissemination of outstanding literary and cultural works from both countries. He expressed hope for collaboration in classic book translation, leveraging BLCU's expertise to advance mutual translation of cultural classics between China and Malaysia, supporting deep dissemination and learning of both countries' languages and cultures for mutual benefit. Additionally, he hoped to deepen cooperation with BLCU in multiple areas: anticipating systematic training for Malaysian teachers at BLCU to enhance local Chinese teachers' teaching abilities and cultural literacy. Meanwhile, both sides could design multi-level language learning projects, from introductory courses for beginners to academic training for advanced learners, fully meeting the Chinese learning needs of the Malaysian public and building bridges for China-Malaysia educational cooperation and talent exchanges.
President Duan Peng affirmed and supported Deputy Minister Wong's cooperation proposals, responding positively: First, welcoming more Malaysian students for exchanges and studies through mutual visits, language training, and winter/summer camps to deepen cultural understanding and friendship among youth; Second, inviting Malaysian Sinologists to join BLCU's Sinologist Program, establishing a high-level academic dialogue platform based on the university's resources to promote deep mutual learning in language and culture; Third, under the guidance of the National Press and Publication Administration, the Secretariat of the Mutual Translation Plan for Asian Classics will advance the plan, actively implementing book selection, translation review, and publication to promote mutual learning among China-Malaysia civilizations; Fourth, jointly building a localized Chinese education system, drawing on BLCU's international Chinese education experience to provide systematic training for Malaysian local teachers and co-develop cultural courses for Southeast Asian ethnic Chinese students, supporting the sustainable development of Chinese education in Malaysia.
After the talks, Deputy Minister Wong and his delegation visited the University History Museum and posed for commemorative photos.
Key officials including Deputy Director-General Fan Qinghua from the Cooperation and Exchange Division of the National Press and Publication Administration, and heads from BLCU's Office of International Cooperation and Exchange, Belt and Road Academy, and International Student Affairs Office participated in the exchange activities.
Editor: Lü Meining
Reviewer: Chen Siyu
