From April 11 to 18, Professor Zhang Junfeng, President of Ocean University of China (OUC), led a delegation to Solomon Islands and Australia, where they visited Solomon Islands National University, Adelaide University, and The University of Western Australia to advance practical cooperation.
During the visit, the delegation held talks with Solomon Islands’ government representatives, including Jeremiah Manele, Prime Minister of Solomon Islands; Tozen Leokana, Minister of Education and Human Resources Development; Constance Nasi, Founding Chief Executive Officer of the Solomon Islands Tertiary Education and Skills Authority; and Lawrence Hayward, Premier of Isabel Province. The two sides exchanged views on further strengthening cooperation between OUC and Solomon Islands in marine-related fields, with discussions focusing on concrete programs such as jointly establishing the SI-China Ocean Research Center, exploring the co-establishment of a marine industry-education-research center in Isabel Province, strengthening training for marine-related personnel, and supporting Solomon Islands government scholarship students to study at OUC.
Prime Minister Manele expressed appreciation for OUC’s long-standing support for marine governance capacity building in Solomon Islands, especially its efforts to provide professional training for Solomon Island students, researchers, and government officials in relevant fields. He also emphasized that bilateral scientific research cooperation should be closely aligned with Solomon Islands’ national development priorities, covering key areas such as climate change response, marine resource management, and marine disaster prevention and mitigation.
President Zhang Junfeng put forward three proposals for deepening cooperation. First, the two sides should strengthen joint cultivation of students, support Solomon Islands government scholarship students in studying in China, and encourage OUC’s students and faculty members to carry out academic exchanges and internships in Solomon Islands. Second, OUC will provide training programs for Solomon Islands officials from relevant ministries in ocean governance and other areas. Third, the two sides should advance scientific research cooperation by relying on the jointly established SI-China Ocean Research Center and conducting collaborative research on topics of shared interest such as global climate change, marine environmental and resource protection, and natural disaster response.
The delegation visited Solomon Islands National University (SINU) and held talks with Acting Vice-Chancellor William Parairato and other faculty members. The two sides signed an MOU and officially launched the establishment of the SI-China Ocean Research Center, and exchanged views on cooperation in areas such as summer cruise, personnel training, and joint scientific research. Both sides agreed that the establishment of the SI-China Ocean Research Center is an important step forward in the partnership between the two universities. It will help strengthen Solomon Islands’ research capacity in marine science and promote educational cooperation and friendly relations between China and Solomon Islands. During the visit, the delegation was also invited to attend the launch ceremony of Village Boy Knight: A Life of Service to Solomon Islands. This book, written by SINU Chancellor Sir Dr. Nathan Kere and published by OUC-press, is one of the outcomes of academic exchanges between the two universities.
The delegation visited Adelaide University (AU) and held talks with Vice Chancellor and President Nicola Phillips, Deputy Vice Chancellor Jessica Gallagher, and other faculty members. Both sides agreed that OUC and AU have long been among each other’s most important partners and have achieved fruitful outcomes in cooperation over the years. Among them, Haide College, the Chinese-Foreign Cooperative Education Institution jointly established by the two universities, has delivered notable results, won broad recognition and high praise from various sectors of society, and laid a solid foundation for the two universities to further deepen their comprehensive strategic cooperation. The two sides conducted in-depth exchanges and reached a broad consensus on continuously advancing the high-quality development of Haide College and further expanding academic exchanges, collaborative research, and joint cultivation in more areas such as chemistry, information science, and medicine. The delegation also met with Haide students studying at AU.
The delegation visited The University of Western Australia (UWA) and held talks with Deputy Vice-Chancellor Guy Littlefair, Pro Vice-Chancellor Jennifer Howell, Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor Maggie Ying Jiang, and other faculty members. The two sides reviewed the positive outcomes achieved since the establishment of their partnership and discussed ways to expand and deepen inter-university cooperation. Both sides agreed that the two universities enjoy significant international influence in areas such as marine science, geoscience, and resource engineering, and that their disciplinary strengths are highly aligned, with broad prospects for cooperation. The two universities also agreed to work closely on the basis of their existing cooperation to explore the possibility of launching cooperative education programs and to further strengthen academic exchanges and collaborative research in frontier areas such as deep-sea mining and environmental monitoring, subsea carbon storage, high-value utilization of marine biological resources, and polar marine biology and ecological conservation.
During their stay in Solomon Islands, the delegation also visited the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Solomon Islands and met with Ambassador Cai Weiming.
