By LONG Yun & CHEN Chunyou

Group photo of foreign experts in 2023 Foreign Experts Reception Shaanxi venue. (PHOTO: Science and Technology Department of Shaanxi province)

With Spring Festival approaching, a reception for foreign experts was hosted by the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) on January 12.

Expats Gatherd to Celebrate the Spring Festival

On behalf of the MOST and State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs (SAFEA), Li Meng, vice-minister of MOST and administrator of SAFEA, extended festival greetings and best wishes to foreign experts in China and other foreigners who contribute to China's social and economic development, via video link.

"Over the past decade, China has made remarkable achievements in scientific and technological innovation, which have also been made with the contribution of foreign experts," said Li.

Li applauded foreign experts' role in promoting international exchanges and cooperation in the fields of scientific research, technological innovation, cultural exchanges and other fields. He sincerely hoped more foreign experts could work and start businesses in China.

"In the future, we will continue to strengthen cooperation and exchanges and contribute more wisdom and strength to addressing common challenges of humanity and building a community with a shared future for mankind," he said.

Nearly 140 foreign experts and their families from over 40 countries and regions attended the event at the main venue in Beijing. At the same time, sub-venues were set up in Shandong, Tianjin, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Anhui, Guangzhou, Shaanxi, Fujian, Hubei and Xizang Autonomous Region. More than 200 foreign experts attended the event on-line to celebrate the year of rabbit at the sub-venue.

Expats are talking with each other at the Beijing venue. (PHOTO: FANG Linlin from S&T Daily)

During the talent show, foreign experts demonstrated the beauty of cultural diversity through their well-designed performances and shared the festival happiness via video link. Furthermore, some foreign dignitaries such as the Mayor of Cologne of Germany, President of the Royal Academy of Engineering of UK and Secretary General of American Society of Mechanical Engineers, delivered their Spring Festival wishes to participants in the form of videos and congratulatory letters.

Embrace More Communication in the Year of Rabbit

Reporter from Science and Technology Daily is interviewing Dr. Muhammad Arif Mughal. (PHOTO: S&T Daily)

During the Spring Festival Reception,  some foreign experts spoke to Science and Technology Daily about their plans and visions in new year after the optimized COVID-19 measures.

Patrick Rioual, research fellow at the Institute of Geology and Geophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, is looking forward to conducting fieldwork in Sichuan with his Chinese and French colleagues in the new year. He is optimistic about the prospects of increased collaboration at a high level between the two sides.

In order to connect China and the rest of the world, Rioual established academic advancement projects with scientists all over the world. As an editor of many academic journals, he hopes that more of China's scientific achievements go global, and more papers written by Chinese scientists could be read by people outside China.

Adalberto Noyola Robles, a Mexican professor, is the director of the UNAM and BFSU Mexican Studies Center in Beijing. "China is a technology leader," said Noyola, noting that the government's well-organized plan and investments had created huge accomplishments in the sci-tech field.

Noyola anticipates increased mobility in student and scholar exchanges, following China's lifting of COVID-related travel restrictions. This year, he will play a more active role in promoting more major institutions in China and Mexico, to engage in in-depth communication in a variety of sectors, with a focus on the scientific and technological arena.

As a director of the Sino-French Engineer School at Beihang University, Frederic Genty was impressed by a joint operation conducted by the deep-sea manned submersible Fendouzhe and its deep-sea lander at a depth of 10,000 meters below the ocean floor. The operation, the first of its kind in the world, was also live-streamed.

"We train our students to be ambassadors between China and the rest of the world," said Genty, adding that global skills enable students to be global contributors to the advancement of science and technology. He called for an increase in global cooperation with closer, more tangible and integrated ties.

According to data from the Ministry of Education, approximately 21,000 Pakistani students are enrolled in Chinese universities.

Muhammad Arif Mughal was an overseas student at the University of Science and Technology Beijing (USTB) twelve years ago. Now he is a lecturer at the Institute of Artificial Intelligence, USTB.

Mughal spoke highly of China's advancements in enegy industry, such as "artificial sun" programs.

"I am a beneficiary of the Belt and Road Initiative," said Mughal, adding that the development of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor had brought about significant improvements in his hometown. According to Mughal, China consistently makes its commitment to international collaboration. He expects to step up efforts to boost more Sino-Pakistani academic exchanges.

This article is also contributed by the China Association for International Exchange of Personnel.