New college to cultivate local talent for China-Laos Railway
The plaque of the Sino-Laos Engineering College was unveiled on Wednesday.
The Shanghai Institute of Technology and Souphanouvong University launched the Sino-Laos Engineering College on Wednesday to cultivate more local talent to serve the China-Laos Railway.
According to a memorandum of cooperation signed by the two universities at the launch ceremony, Shanghai Institute of Technology will send faculty members to Souphanouvong University to teach and further develop curricula tailored to the needs of the railway engineering sector. The program will include both undergraduate and postgraduate education, as well as research on railway-related issues.
Guo Qingsong, chancellor of the Shanghai Institute of Technology, emphasized the importance of the new joint institute.
"The operation and maintenance of the China-Laos Railway needs more Laotian talent who know both railway engineering technology and local culture and language," he said.
Since the 1,035-kilometer China-Laos Railway was put into operation in December 2021, connecting Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province, with the Laotian capital Vientiane, it has handled more than 43 million tons of cargo and over 38 million passenger trips.
"We hope that the institute would serve as a benchmark for international educational cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative and expand such cooperation to other countries," Guo added.
Wang Xiaofan, Shanghai Institute of Technology's president, also expressed a commitment to the open, cooperative, and mutually beneficial principles of international education.
"We are dedicated to cultivating more talent who will serve as pillars for the friendship between our two countries and contribute to building a shared future for mankind."
The partnership marks a continuation of the collaborative efforts by the two universities following the initial MoU signed in 2017 for railway engineering education, which saw the first group of 10 Laotian undergraduates and 3 postgraduates come to Shanghai in 2018.
Vira Anolac, president of Souphanouvong University, highlighted the program's success, noting that over 30 students have already studied in Shanghai, becoming the first batch of high-skilled railway engineers in Laos. These students are poised to become the backbone of future railway projects in the country.
Wang Xiaofan (right), president of Shanghai Institute of Technology, and Vira Anolac, president of Souphanouvong University, sign an MoU to further cooperation between the two universities.
