The 2023 China-Africa Deans of Education Forum was held on Wednesday at Beijing Normal University, aiming to share practices and promote education cooperation between China and African countries.

Officials from UNESCO and BNU, deans of education institutes from China and Africa, and researchers and practitioners in the field of teacher education attended the forum, delivering keynote speeches on the current issues of education and delving into the sustainable future.

The forum focused on challenges and solutions to high-quality education system, particularly the innovation, social cohesion and transformative role of teachers.

Qin Changwei, secretary-general of the Chinese National Commission for UNESCO, said the forum is meaningful in promoting the cooperation between education institutes and teachers from China and Africa.

"It provides a platform to share policies, practices and experiences in transforming education in China and African countries," Qin said.

The forum will contribute achieving Education 2030, one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, he added.

Last week, the UNESCO General Conference in Paris adopted a resolution to establish the UNESCO International Institute for STEM Education in Shanghai, marking the establishment of the first Category 1 UNESCO institute with a global mandate outside Western countries.

"The initial goal of China's proposal of the resolution and sponsorship for the Institute is to support STEM education in developing countries, including African countries," Qin said.

The Network of China-Africa Institutes of Education was launched during the forum to enhance the capacity of education institutes and foster a high-quality teaching force in China and Africa.

https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202311/15/WS65546f59a31090682a5ee4cd_1.html