From June 7-12, President Zhang Junfeng led a delegation to France and Italy, with an aim to deepen strategic cooperation between OUC and its partner institutions. During the visit, the delegation attended the Third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3), co-organized a side event with Mission SeaOrbiter (MSO), and visited Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The visit achieved fruitful outcomes.
On June 9, the delegation attended the opening ceremony of UNOC3, where representatives from 122 countries, key marine-related non-governmental organizations and academic institutions convened to discuss global ocean governance. OUC, in collaboration with MSO, co-hosted “Beyond the Deep Blue”, a formal side event of UNOC3. The meeting featured in-depth and productive discussions on ocean sustainable development and marine scientific cooperation.
On June 10, as a co-organizing institution, the OUC delegation participated in “Ocean Science and End-User Toolkit”, another side event of UNOC3. Sun Shuxian, Vice-Minister of Natural Resources and Director of the State Oceanic Administration in China; Mohamed Ayman Ashour, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research in Egypt；Francis Vallat, founding Chairman of the French Maritime Cluster; Yutaka Michida, Chair of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO; and Leticia Carvalho, Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority attended the meeting. Witnessed by all the participating guests, President Zhang and Academician Jacques Rougerie signed an agreement of collaboration, which further clarified the collaborative relationship on developing, constructing and operating the first SeaOrbiter.
From June 10-12, the delegation visited the headquarters of the FAO in Rome, Italy, and held talks with Director-General Dr. Qu Dongyu. The two sides reached a consensus on enhancing strategic cooperation. In the presence of Director-General Qu, Zhang Junfeng and Godfrey Magwenzi, Deputy Director-General of FAO, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on strengthening cooperation in fisheries and aquaculture. According to the MoU, the two parties will foster strategic collaboration in areas such as marine aquaculture, fish processing, aquatic health, and food security, leveraging OUC’s academic strengths to advance the development and utilization of marine fishery resources, ecological and environmental conservation, and sustainable development research. Furthermore, the two sides will work on joint talent training to provide human resource support for the sustainable development of global marine agriculture. During the visit, the delegation also held discussions on specific cooperation plans with leaders and expert teams from FAO’s Fisheries and Aquaculture Division, South-South and Triangular Cooperation Division, Land and Water Division, and Forestry Division. While attending UNOC3 in Nice, Zhang Junfeng also met with Manuel Barange, Assistant Director-General and Director of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Division at FAO, and exchanged views on deepening strategic cooperation.
During his visit in France, President Zhang, accompanied by Didier Bernheim, Corresponding Member of the Academy of Fine Arts of the Institut de France, and Chen Yan, Chair of the China-France Art and Science Research and Development Association, visited the Institut de France. Zhang Junfeng also met with OUC alumni representatives at Jean Cardot Cultural Space.
The delegation visited the Chinese Embassy in Italy and held discussions with Ambassador Jia Guide. President Zhang introduced OUC’s development and its cooperation with Italian institutions. Ambassador Jia offered suggestions for the university to further expand marine science and education cooperation with Italian universities and research institutions, as well as to train talent for international organizations. The delegation also visited the Permanent Representation of China to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture, and held talks with Ambassador Zhang Lubiao. President Zhang introduced the cooperation progress and future plans of OUC and the FAO. Ambassador Zhang highly regarded OUC’s contributions to marine science and fisheries, and expressed full support for deepening cooperation between OUC and the FAO.
