“I consider China a great school for the world, and Angola has much to learn from the Chinese experience. We should seize the opportunities and openings offered by China. This is crucial for our sustainable development,” said Edson Martins, an Angolan endocrinologist.
“My experience in China was wonderful and incredible. When I went to China, I didn’t know Chinese,” said Martins who studied at Wuhan University in central China for over a decade and completed his medical education up to the doctoral level, “I went there and learned the basic Chinese characters at my university. Everything I have today was learned in China.”
On Friday in Luanda, the Angolan capital, the Chinese embassy in Angola organized a gathering for students who returned after studying in China, with more than ten of them now working in various fields of the country.
They told Xinhua the importance of their experiences in China for their professional careers and Angola’s development.
Victor Assuilo studied at Zhejiang Normal University in eastern China for several years and currently works in Angola’s Ministry of Finance. He believed that studying in Chinese universities significantly benefits Angolan students “thanks to China’s achievements in various fields such as industrial technology, agriculture, and trade, which are exactly the talent areas Angola needs for its progress.”
“The partnership between Angola and China is very enriching. This provides young people with the opportunity to establish themselves academically and professionally. When these students return to the country, they apply the acquired knowledge to meet the demands of contributing to Angola’s growth,” he said.
Assuilo mentioned that the main difficulty faced by Angolan students is the barrier of the Chinese language and believed that strengthening pre-China training in Chinese for students, along with promoting more awareness of studying in China, would increase the interest of Angolan students in the Asian country.
“Currently, some projects are underway, such as the Confucius Institute in Angola, which offers classes to refresh and update knowledge of the Chinese language for Angolan students.”
Aurelio Morais, who studied at Changsha University of Science and Technology in central China, now works in a provincial government agency. He believed that interaction between Angola and the local Chinese community contributes to strengthening cooperation and cultural exchange between the two countries.
“As someone who lived in China and understands the situation well, I believe it is important for Angola to continue opening its doors to the local Chinese community,” he said.
According to data from the Angolan embassy in China, there are currently about 300 Angolan students studying in China.
