Premier Li urges educational communities of China, New Zealand to cooperate more closely

WELLINGTON, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Friday called for enhanced mutual learning and people-to-people ties through friendly and sincere exchanges between the educational communities of China and New Zealand.

Li made the remarks when addressing the closing ceremony of a forum on education development between China and New Zealand in Auckland. He attended the ceremony with New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon.

Li said that China will provide New Zealand with 100 International Chinese Language Teachers Scholarships, 1,000 "Chinese Bridge" summer camp opportunities in China, and 5,000 Chinese books in the next five years.

China welcomes more young people from New Zealand to learn the Chinese language and culture, and supports more Chinese young people to visit and study in New Zealand to enhance mutual understanding and friendship between the younger generations of the two countries, he noted.

Li said that educational cooperation has long been an important aspect of China-New Zealand relations. The breadth and depth of this cooperation have continuously expanded, yielding significant results in talent cultivation, joint scientific research and academic exchange.

The new round of scientific and technological revolution is profoundly changing the way of human production and life, and education is facing higher requirements in terms of reform and innovation. Therefore, the educational communities of China and New Zealand should cooperate more closely, Li said.

Some 160 university presidents, representatives of educational institutions, and other professionals from educational communities of both countries also attended the event.