As a key initiative under the Belt and Road framework, "Vocational Education Going Global" has become a major brand for China’s high-level opening-up in vocational education. Actively responding to the national call, our school has incorporated internationalization into its development strategy. After multiple rounds of negotiations, on July 14, a cooperation exchange meeting and the signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) were held in Beijing.
Chen Xiaobin, President of Shanghai Modern Chemical Industry Vocational College, and Berdiyar Bakhtiyarovich Jollybekov, Rector of Karakalpak State University named after Berdakh, signed the agreement on behalf of their respective institutions, marking the official launch of our school’s "Vocational Education Going Global" project — a milestone breakthrough in the school’s history of international cooperation. As a key country in Central Asia, Uzbekistan has been vigorously advancing the reform of its vocational education system in recent years and actively introducing international educational standards. "Vocational Education Going Global" not only addresses the talent needs of enterprises but also creates a virtuous cycle of cultivating local talent, facilitating production capacity cooperation, and improving people’s livelihoods. Our cooperation with Karakalpak State University named after Berdakh comes at an opportune time, precisely aligning with the strategic needs of China-Uzbekistan educational cooperation and contributing Shanghai’s strength to bringing Chinese vocational education standards to Central Asia.
Under the signed MOU, the two parties will carry out pragmatic cooperation in several areas as needed, including: Jointly establishing "Chinese + Vocational Skills" short-term training bases, with a focus on skills training in chemical and safety-related fields, to promote capacity building among Uzbek youth; Collaboratively developing bilingual (Chinese-English) textbooks, digital teaching resource databases, and digital courses, to support the construction of Uzbekistan’s national digital vocational education resource; Building industry-oriented training bases, aligning with the needs of Chinese-invested enterprises to conduct joint school-enterprise training and technology R&D; Implementing joint teacher capacity-building programs, focusing on teaching methodologies and digital tool applications; In the future, jointly organizing cultural festivals, academic exchanges, and technical exhibitions to promote people-to-people bonds.
This successful signing with Karakalpak State University named after Berdakh marks a critical step for our school from "bringing in" to "going global". Taking this opportunity, we will continue to deepen educational cooperation with countries along the Belt and Road, promote the deep integration of Chinese vocational education standards with Uzbekistan’s industrial needs, and contribute more vocational education wisdom and strength to serving the nation’s opening-up strategy and enhancing mutual understanding between the peoples of China and Uzbekistan.
Karakalpak State University named after Berdakh, located in Nukus, Uzbekistan, is the highest academic institution in the Republic of Karakalpakstan. Founded in 1976, it has 17 schools, offering over 80 bachelor’s and more than 50 master’s degree programs, with over 20,000 students enrolled. The university is actively committed to international educational development and has cooperated with universities in over 10 countries, conducting exchange student and dual-degree programs, with its international plans continuing to expand.
Attending the meeting were the Director of the International Exchange Office of Karakalpak State University named after Berdakh, relevant leader and department heads from our school, Li He, Vice President of China Business Center of Tang International Education Group, and heads of its Overseas Operations Center.