Dr. Liu Limin, Former Vice Minister of Education and President of CEAIE

Dr. Liu Limin, Former Vice Minister of Education and President of China Education Association for International Exchange, attended the opening ceremony of the forum and said in his speech that China-Thailand educational exchanges and cooperation not only have a natural and solid foundation, but also have broad prospects and future; The “Belt and Road” Initiative should be a joint venture to create a new paradigm for exchanges and cooperation in higher education for the new era, especially in the fields of language education, innovation of vocational education cooperation, and high-quality exchanges and cooperation aiming at building a community of human destiny. 

In his opening remarks, Dr. Anek Laothamatas, Minister of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation of Thailand, thanked the Chinese government for its assistance in the fight against the pandemic, and said that the friendship between China and Thailand has a long history and the comprehensive strategic cooperation carried out in multiple dimensions has been moving forward. He believes that the application of digital technology in teaching is not only the need to deal with the epidemic, but also the need to adapt to the development of the times; He encouraged students to learn more about Asia to adapt to the trend of "Orientalization" around the world.

Dr. Anek Laothamatas, Minister of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation of Thailand

Signing ceremony 1

Signing ceremony 2

Signing ceremony 3

At the opening ceremony, MOUs and Letters of Intent were signed between Chinese and Thai universities respectively in the forms of either onsite or online manner, such as Jiangsu University and Chiang Mai University, Beijing Language and Culture University and Siam University, Guizhou University and Mae Fah Luang University, and Guizhou Institute of Technology and North-Chiang Mai University.

Mr. Wang Yongli, Vice-President and Secretary-General of CEAIE, Mrs. Wang Hui, Member of the Party Group of Guizhou Provincial Department of Education, Mr. Du Kewei, Director of China Center for International People-to-People Exchange of MOE, Professor Yan Xiaohong, President of Jiangsu University and ACTU Co-Chair, Professor Li Jianjun, Party Secretary of Guizhou University, Dr. Pornchai Mongkhonvanit, President of Siam University of Thailand and Co-Chair of ACTU, and Mrs. Feng Junying, Education Counsellor of the Chinese Embassy in Thailand, attended the opening ceremony and delivered speeches respectively.

At the “University President's Forum”, more than ten presidents from both sides shared their views and discussed about the current situation, mode, experience and problems of China-Thailand higher education exchange and cooperation from different perspectives. Several suggestions were proposed with regard to the opportunities and challenges faced by bilateral cooperation, yet, all speakers showed optimistic and confident about a bright future for high-level and high-quality cooperation between the two sides in the new era.

The Forum held two parallel panel sessions, “Forum on Sino-Thai Sustainable Agricultural and Food Development” and “Roundtable on Sino-Thai Higher Education Cooperation” to explore the in-depth cooperation between the two sides in specific professional fields. A number of issues were addressed at the “Agriculture and Food Session” such as agriculture and rural development, fine variety of maize breeding, food safety, edible fungi research, etc. There were also heated discussions at the “Roundtable Session” on several issues such as curriculum development, credit transfer, mutual degree recognition, language teaching, teacher and student exchange, translation of classics, teacher education, open distance lifetime learning, subject cooperation in tourism management, and promoting cooperation on the maritime Silk Road.

"Zhi & Xing Guizhou" Silk Road Youth Exchange Program 1

"Zhi & Xing Guizhou" Silk Road Youth Exchange Program 2

"Zhi & Xing Guizhou" Silk Road Youth Exchange Program 3

"Zhi & Xing Guizhou" Silk Road Youth Exchange Program 4

Group photo of guests and leaders of "The 3rd Forum on China-Thailand Higher Education Cooperation and 2021 ACTU Annual Conference"

Participants commented that the forum was carefully planned, carefully prepared and carefully arranged, which achieved the expected results. The Forum has become a unique high-level platform for university exchanges between the two countries. We look forward to playing a greater role in China-Thailand higher education cooperation in the future.