August 25, 2022

Despite Re-Opening: China Non-Committal on Return of African Students

T The Chinese government's August 18 high-level ministerial meeting, convened as part of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, failed to deliver a date for the return to China of thousands of African students who were studying in the country prior to the Covid-19 outbreak in 2020.

Despite talks, there was no breakthrough in talks between Africa and China, However, the positive outcome of the meeting is that China is ready to "help" the students return. "China is ready to overcome the pandemic's challenges and assist African students who previously studied in the country in returning," a statement said.

…we will remain committed to accelerating the effort to build a China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era, enhancing solidarity and cooperation among developing countries, and building the shining example of FOCA…

China promised African countries 50,000 scholarships between 2018 and 2021, and this could be one of the reasons for the growth, in addition to education being more affordable in China compared to Europe and America.

A statement from the ministry of External Affairs said, “We will remain committed to accelerating the effort to build a China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era, enhancing solidarity and cooperation among developing countries, and building the shining example of FOCA.”, this despite there being no breakthrough talks between stakeholders.

Many of the students fled the Asian country following the pandemic, citing racial mistreatment by authorities and the general public, with some alleging in 2020 that landlords forced them from their homes and denied them access to food stores.

Several have returned home since, and nearly a year after contact learning, international students in many parts of the world returned to campus.

Posted in News and tagged News, China, Africa, Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, IIT, International Students
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