Office of International Affairs, University of Dhaka
At the invitation of the Chinese Embassy in Bangladesh, a nine-member delegation of Bangladeshi scholars visited China from July 30 to August 4, 2023, to participate in the "Seminar on China-Bangladesh Relations " hosted by the Shanghai Institute for International Studies, and visited Yunnan from August 2-4. During the visit, the delegation had extensive and in-depth exchanges with Chinese scholars to explore avenues of mutual understanding and future cooperation.
On July 31, the Seminar on China-Bangladesh Relations was held at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies (SIIS). More than 20 experts and scholars from Dhaka University, North-South University, Shanghai Institute for International Studies, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, Fudan University, Sichuan University, Yunnan University, and Shenzhen University attended the seminar. Prof. Dr. Chen Dongxiao, the president of SIIS, and Prof.Dr. Shamsad Mortuza, Director of the International Affairs Office, University of Dhaka, delivered the opening speeches; Prof. Dr. Abdul Bashir, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, DU, and Prof. Yang Jiemian, Chairman of the Academic Advisory Council, SIIS, delivered the keynote speeches. Experts and scholars from China and Bangladesh shared their views on topics such as "Political and Economic Situation at the Global and Regional Level: Perspectives of Chinese and Bangladeshi Scholars", "China's South Asia Policy" and "The State and Prospect of China-Bangladesh Relations".
Later, the delegation visited the Shanghai Museum, Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall, the First Memorial Hall of the Communist Party of China, and other distinctive landmarks of Shanghai. They witnessed the changes in Shanghai in the past and present, as well as the transformation, and futuristic vision of China's development.
From August 2 to 4, the delegation visited Yunnan Province. On October 3, Mr. Ma Zuoxin, the deputy director of the Foreign Affairs Office of Yunnan Province, welcomed the delegation in Kunming. He said that since the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Bangladesh, Yunnan-Bangladesh exchanges and cooperation in various fields have been frequent and deepened. Three Confucius Institutes (classrooms) in Bangladesh are hosted by Yunnan University and Honghe University, respectively, and many universities and institutions in Yunnan province have set up research institutes for South Asia studies or Bangladesh studies. There are two universities offering Bengali undergraduate programmes, and many Bangladeshi students choose to study in Yunnan. He expressed the Yunnan provincial government’s support for promoting people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.
Prof. Shamsad Motuza, head of the delegation, said that China and Bangladesh enjoy a long history of friendship and fruitful cooperation. The visit of the delegation to China has expanded avenues for scholars of the two countries to further enhance mutual understanding and strengthen cooperation. The members of the delegation expressed their opinions and suggestions on the development of friendly relations between Bangladesh and China and cooperation between Yunnan and Bangladesh in various fields, hoping that the two sides will work together to promote China-Bangladesh friendship in the future.
After the meeting, the delegation also had in-depth exchanges and discussions with experts and scholars on international issues from the Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences, Yunnan University, and Yunnan University of Finance and Economics. Former Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh, Mr. Li Jiming, as an old friend, came to visit the delegation and encouraged both sides to strengthen exchanges.
In the afternoon of the same day, the delegation visited the Institute of International Relations of Yunnan University and had a discussion and exchange with the teachers and students of the institute. Professor Lu Guangsheng, Dean of the Institute, welcomed the delegation. He expressed the hope of strengthening academic exchanges and cooperation with Bangladeshi universities. The graduate students of the institute introduced their research areas and asked many questions of the delegation. The members of the delegation said they were glad to see the strong interest of Chinese students in Bangladeshi studies and welcomed them to study and conduct field research in Bangladesh. They expressed the hope to promote substantive cooperation with the Institute on the basis of the existing inter-university cooperation mechanism, and make use of the good platform of the Confucius Institute at the University of Dhaka to further promote interaction and exchanges between the two sides.
The visit to China, supported by the Chinese Embassy in Bangladesh, aims to promote exchanges and cooperation between Chinese and Bangladeshi academic circles, and is also one of the important activities of the Centre for China Studies at the University of Dhaka. The delegation was headed by Prof. Shamsad Motuza, Director of the International Affairs Office of the University of Dhaka, with eight other members from the University of Dhaka and the North South University. The Confucius Institute at the University of Dhaka coordinated the visit to China. This visit to China is conducive to promoting academic exchanges between China and Bangladesh. It is an important step in promoting the construction of the Centre for China Studies.