SLCJF to hold second China Education Exhibition 2011 at University of Colombo

By Harsha Udayakantha Peiris

Sri Lanka-China Journalists’ Forum (SLCJF) has made all arrangements to hold the second consecutive China Education Exhibition 2011 upon the theme of ‘The Path to Success’ on 14 and 15 May 2011 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., at the Gymnasium of the University of Colombo.

The exhibition is organised by the SLCJF under the patronage of the China Scholarship Council in collaboration with the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Sri Lanka. The event is facilitated by the University of Colombo.

Following the success of the first-ever China Education Exhibition 2010 hosted and launched by SLCJF at the BMICH last year with the participation of more than 40 renowned Chinese universities that offered degrees of international recognition – this year’s exhibition will be attended by another 14 Chinese universities that offer international degrees in many spheres such as medicine, pharmaceutics, humanities, astronautics, aeronautics, agriculture, IT, posts and telecommunications and technology as well as fine arts.

The Chinese universities at the second China Education Exhibition 2011 in Sri Lanka include the Zhejiang University, Nanjing University of Aeronautics & Astronautics, Shanghai Normal University, Harbin Engineering University, Guangxi University of Nationalities, Chongqing University of Posts and telecomunications, Huazhong Normal University, Guangxi University, Shanghai University, Lanzhou University of Technology, East China University of Science and Technology, Ocean University of China, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine and Harbin Institute of Technology.

Commenting on the exhibition, Nalin Aponso, the President of SLCJF stated that the exhibition would boost the interest of the Sri Lankan overseas higher education seekers to study in a stress free learning environment at the state-of-the-art modern universities throughout China.

“The exhibition will provide a unique platform for Sri Lankan students to find better and reputed educational partners in China to fulfil their higher educational requirements abroad,” he added.

SLCJF, which commenced in 2001, is engaged in a dedicated performance since its inception in promoting bilateral relations with the People’s Republic of China in many areas of bilateral interest including, culture, education, art and media that contribute at large, towards the long stood socioeconomic, diplomatic and mutual ties between the two countries.

The forum is a collaboration of dedicated Sri Lankan print and electronic media personnel who have served towards the worthy course of promoting and developing bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and China throughout the past decade.

In 2010, the forum was felicitated by the China Central Television (CCTV) and China Radio International (CRI) for its dedicated performance through Aponso to explore possible institutions enabling CCTV and CRI to find the most accurate media partnership for CCTV and CRI programmes in Sri Lanka.

Aponso was also the youngest Sri Lankan to be awarded by the Chinese People’s Association for ‘Friendship with Foreign Countries’ at the award ceremony held in 2007 for the outstanding performance for the development of mutual understanding between Sri Lanka and China.

The award ceremony was held in commemoration of 50 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries and several reputed Sri Lankan personalities were awarded for their dedicated performance and contributions to upgrade Sri Lanka-China friendship.

Aponso is the Deputy Secretary of the Organisation of South Asian Regional Friendship and Cooperation with China (OSARFCC), where SLCJF holds parallel membership along with India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal.

Meanwhile, SLCJF also received a special recognition for its official Sinhalese publication ‘Mahajana Cheenaya’ (People’s China), for being the major catalyst that initiated and directed the commencement of a China Corner at the National Library and Documentation Board in Colombo.

Recently, SLCJF offered a new facelift to its publication with 36 colourfully laid out pages and with a number of new additions in between, to emerge as a reliable source of updated information on China. The forum also maintains and runs the dedicated website, www.lankachina.com, in order to offer the latest news on bilateral developments between Sri Lanka and China, while acknowledging of the rapid socioeconomic developments in the two countries through collaborative efforts.

In 2009, Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries awarded SLCJF the ‘China-Sri Lanka Friendship Award’ for the forum’s outstanding contribution to the promotion of friendship and mutual understanding between the people of China and Sri Lanka.

Last year, SLCJF made an exclusive Sri Lankan cultural performance in Guangzhou in China through its Cultural Wing, upon an invitation by the Chinese authorities for an international performance to showcase the diversity of Asian culture, parallel to the 16th Asian Games held in China.

Prior to the event, a special delegation of the forum also participated at the ‘Summer Camp’ in Yunan Province in China upon an invitation by the Yunan Nationalities University.

The tour offered a firsthand experience for the delegation that consisted of Sri Lankan journalists, university lecturers and students of the Confucius Centre at the University of Kelaniya, on the latest higher educational methodologies, their capabilities in driving global socioeconomic trends and forces in new directions, the state-of-the-art higher educational components and technologies utilised by the Chinese universities as well as the most desirable and comfortable learning environments in China.