The Australian Government was pleased to host Madame Liu Yandong, State Councilor of the People’s Republic of China, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Australia and China.

 

Madame Liu is the Chinese State Councilor with responsibility for Science, Technology, Education and Culture. Her visit demonstrated the importance of these fields to our bilateral relationship. Madame Liu was accompanied by a large delegation of senior Chinese Government representatives, including Professor Yuan Guiren, Minister for Education, and Professor Wang Zhigang, Vice-Minister for Science and Technology.

 

On Wednesday 12 December 2012, Australia and China signed four bilateral agreements in the areas of education, training, research and culture at Australia’s Parliament House, witnessed by the Hon Julia Gillard, Prime Minister of Australia and Madame Liu.

 

Senator the Hon Chris Evans, former Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Science and Research, renewed Australia’s Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Education, Training and Higher Education Research with his Chinese counterpart, Minister Yuan Guiren. This agreement provides an overarching framework identifying the bilateral priorities for engagement, including mobility and innovation across school education, vocational education and training, higher education and university research.

 

Senator Evans also issued a joint statement with Professor Wang Zhigang announcing the successful Joint-Research Centres to be funded under the Australia-China Science and Research Fund. The Australian and Chinese Governments will jointly contribute AUD10 million to establish joint research centres across a number of fields, including energy, agriculture, engineering and environmental science. These centres will develop synergies between leading research organisations in Australia and China, and contribute toward greater research collaboration between our two countries.

 

During the signing ceremony, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Chinese Ministry of Education, and the National Library of Australia signed a Memorandum of Understanding with its Chinese counterpart.

 

Following the signing ceremony, Senator Evans met with Madame Liu to discuss the role that science, technology, research and education play in the Australia-China bilateral relationship and the importance of personal connections between researchers and university leaders in driving collaboration.

 

Senator Evans and Madame Liu acknowledged the need to encourage more Australian students to undertake a study experience in China and that young people will be responsible for the ongoing connections between both countries.  Both leaders identified the importance of innovation, particularly with the tightened global economic environment, and that there is great potential for future collaboration in this area.

 

The visit by Madame Liu and her senior delegation followed the highly successful Australia-China University Leaders’ Forum, run in conjunction with Universities Australia, and the Australia-China Knowledge Exchange Symposium, all of which have been instrumental in bringing together education, research, science and technology and setting an agenda for future coordinated cooperation between Australia and China.

 

State Councilor Madame Liu Yandong and Prime Minister Julia Gillard witness Minister Yuan Guiren and Senator the Hon Chris Evans signing an MOU on Cooperation in Education, Training and Higher Education Research.
Photograph courtesy of Auspic.