FABI welcomed a student delegation from the Tsinghua University in Beijing on 20 February. The 12 students were led by the Administrative Dean of the School of Journalism and Communication Professor Yu Hu and the Deputy Director of the Centre for Global Competence Development, Prof. Yunhan Yu and accompanied by Counselor Lihong Hou, Dr Yu Pang and Mr Zhongyang Wangof the People’s Republic of China Embassy. 

The group were welcomed by FABI Deputy Director Prof. Fanus Venter and hosted by Dr Tuan Duong and postdoctoral Fellows Dr Runlei Chang and Dr FeiFei Liu. They were given an overview of FABI’s history and research activities as well as the Institute’s history of collaboration with China that has resulted in the establishment of the CERC-FABI Tree Protection Programme (CFTPP). This is a cooperative venture programme established between the China Eucalypt Research Centre (CERC) of the Chinese Academy of Forestry in China, and FABI.

Counselor Hou spoke of the long association between China and FABI and said that he believed that the collaboration in science and technology plays an important role in the relationship between China and South Africa.

The group, comprising under and postgraduate students were on a 14-day trip to South Africa to visit Academic and research institutes. The students come from a range of disciplines including Communication, life sciences, arts, engineering, physics and architecture.