Hunan, Cuba agree to strengthen education cooperation

A delegation led by Xia Zhilun, director of the Hunan Provincial Department of Education, visited the Ministry of Higher Education of Cuba, the University of Havana (UH), and the Higher School of State and Government Staff of Cuba on April 20 local time. They conducted in-depth and extensive exchanges on Hunan-Cuba higher education cooperation. The visit was a result of coordination among trainees of a foreign-aid program from Hunan International Business Vocational College.

During the visit, the delegation reached a consensus with the Ministry of Higher Education of Cuba and UH on carrying out cooperation in tourism and language majors between UH and Hunan's universities. Afterwards, the Hunan International Business Vocational College and the Hunan City University both signed cooperation framework agreements with UH. 

The Hunan International Business Vocational College and the Higher School of State and Government Staff of Cuba signed a strategic cooperation agreement. The Cuban alumni branch of the Hunan education institution was established on site. Xia expressed his hope that the branch will function as a bridge to promote education and cultural exchanges as well as economic and trade cooperation between China and Cuba.

The Hunan International Business Vocational College was included in the first batch of training bases for international business officials by China's Ministry of Commerce in 2010. Since then, the school has organized 434 foreign-aid training classes for more than 120 countries and regions, providing 11,592 training opportunities. Among the trainees, 226 are from Cuba.