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Minister Lawless begins official visit to China
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From: Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science
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Minister will sign an MoU with the Ministry of Science and Technology
Minister will attend the WorldSkills Competition in Shanghai to mark Ireland’s 70th anniversary as a member of WorldSkills International
Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research Innovation and Science, James Lawless TD, has begun a five day-long visit to China, where he will visit Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong.
During his programme Minister Lawless will undertake a series of engagements, including signing a Memorandum of Understanding in Beijing with the Chinese Minister for Science and Technology, Mr. Hejun Yin, on cooperation on science, technology and innovation.
Minister Lawless will meet with senior leadership from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and take a tour of its Institute of Theoretical Physics. He will finish his Beijing leg by attending an event, organised by Education in Ireland and Embassy Beijing, on transnational education where several Irish and Chinese higher education institutions will announce new partnership agreements.
Minister Lawless will then travel to Shanghai to attend the WorldSkills Competition where the he will meet with Irish competitors. He will present a commemorative medal to Mr. Hoey CEO WorldSkills International and Ms. Du Jaun, Director of the WorldSkills Museum in Shanghai, in recognition of Ireland's 70th anniversary of membership of WorldSkills International.
As part of the event Minister Lawless will also lead on a panel discussion on building more inclusive technical and vocational education and training systems and take part in a closed Ministerial meeting chaired by Minister of Human Resources and Social Security of China, Ms. Xiaoping Wang.
Finally, the Minister will travel to Hong Kong where he will take a tour of the Hong Kong Government’s digital technology hub and AI accelerator, Cyberport. He will also meet with Hong Kong Government Under Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Ms. Lillian Cheong to discuss Ireland and Hong Kong’s shared innovation priorities.
Speaking in advance of his visit, Minister Lawless said,
"We greatly value our educational relationship with China, and I am looking forward to continuing to expand the links between our two countries as part of this visit. China has rapidly become one of the most innovative countries in the world and is a global leader in many scientific and technological fields. Ireland too is recognised internationally as a global innovation hub. Ireland has had Research and Innovation MoUs in place with China since 2012, with the most recent signed in 2019, before my Department was created.
"My hope is that this renewed MoU can create opportunities to build on our existing partnership and to identify areas of future collaboration, which serve to tackle societal challenges in areas such as climate, food, sustainability and biodiversity. MoUs such as this, as well as Ireland’s Research Security Guidelines, published earlier this month, are intended to provide researchers with the supports they need to undertake and manage effective international research collaborations.
"China is also Ireland’s main partner for transnational education, with the number of joint programmes doubling since 2014 with approximately 132 joint programmes and 16 Irish higher education institutions and 54 Chinese institutions now serving over 16,000 students in China. This is a great testament to the positive work being undertaken by our higher education institutions, with the help of Enterprise Ireland, to foster these links, allowing us to bring Irish education standards, our innovation culture and academic values to China.
"I am also delighted to be able to join the Irish competitors at the WorldSkills Competition in Shanghai as part of this visit, the world's leading international competition for vocational, technical, and apprenticeship skills. This year marks a significant milestone as we celebrate 70 years of Ireland’s membership of WorldSkills International. I want to wish all the Irish competitors the very best of luck in the competition."