On the afternoon of 10 May, H.E. Ann Derwin, Ambassador of Ireland to China, led a delegation to visit Nanfang College, Guangzhou. The two sides had in-depth discussions on building deeper cooperation in running education projects. Ambassador Ann Derwin had cordial exchanges with teachers and students representatives, and unveiled the Training Base of China-Ireland Cooperative Data Science and Big Data Technology Program.
Why did H.E. Ambassador visit NCG?
In November 2021 with the approval of the Chinese Ministry of Education, NCG and Griffith College Ireland jointly organized the undergraduate education program of "Data Science and Big Data Technology". This is NCG's first Sino-foreign cooperative school-running project approved by the Ministry of Education, filling the gap of international collaboration in big data major in Guangdong Province.
In March 2022, on the basis of the "4+0" undergraduate education program, the two universities signed the "3+1+1" project cooperation agreement to further uplevel the cooperation to master's field, aiming to contribute educational power to the "Belt and Road" Initiative and the high-quality construction of the "Digital Silk Road", writing a new chapter in the innovative development, transformation and upgrading of the big data industry in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
As the first European Ambassador to China welcomed by NCG, Ambassador Ann Derwin specifically chose to visit the Data Science and Big Data Technology program jointly established by NCG and Griffith College during her first visit to Guangdong Province, witnessing both the profound cooperation and friendship and a valuable opportunity laid behind to further promote the exchanges between the two schools.
Cultivate talents with global vision and competitiveness
Ambassador Ann Derwin delivered a speech at the meeting of students from China-Ireland cooperation projects. She said that Ireland known as the "European Silicon Valley", is a country with innovative spirit and professions including electronic communications, computer and others ranking among the top in the world. According to statistics, more than 1,200 globally renowned companies have chosen to set up their EU headquarters in Ireland, including nine of the world's top 10 ICT companies such as Google, Facebook, Twitter and Apple. Ambassador Ann Derwin welcomes students from NCG to Ireland for further study, to receive rigorous and high-quality international education and get the opportunity to start an international career. She stressed that with the advent of an increasingly globalized knowledge-and-technology-intensive society, international education has become a global trend. She hoped that students will continue to study hard and become talents with a global vision and competitiveness.
Ireland's Ambassador to China, Ann Derwin delivered a speech
Leading teams of NCG and Griffith College Ireland presented the admission certificates to student representatives of the first China-Ireland Cooperative education program. Both sides agreed that they will continue to write a new chapter for the two schools, promoting the multi-dimensional cooperation between the two sides and making contributions to the development of China-Ireland education partnership.
Teachers and students show blessings in love and friendship evergreen through calligraphy
Ambassador had group photo with teachers and students
Ambassador Ann Derwin and her delegation's visit to NCG represents the importance attached by the Irish government to China-Ireland cooperation in running schools, and also the remarkable results achieved under the cooperation between NCG and Griffith College Ireland, showcasing great significance. The two universities will take this opportunity to further strengthen exchanges and interactions, continuously expand and deepen cooperation, promoting the deep integration in scientific research and education.
