On the morning of May 22, the opening ceremony of the 25th seminar for Arab officials, organized by the China-Arab Research Center on Reform and Development (hereinafter referred to as “the Center”), was held at the Songjiang Campus of Shanghai International Studies University (SISU). This session marked the first seminar for Algerian officials, with 13 participants from ministries such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Trade, and the Ministry of Industry of Algeria attending the program in China. Li Yansong, Executive President of the Center and President of SISU, attended the ceremony.
The event was hosted by Wang Guangda, Secretary-General of the Center. Officials from the Department of West Asian and North African Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the China-Arab Research Center on Reform and Development, the School of Oriental Languages, and the Belt and Road Strategy Institute also attended the ceremony.
In his speech, President Li Yansong extended a warm welcome to the Algerian participants on behalf of SISU and the Center. He emphasized the significance of this year, which marks the 80th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations and the 70th anniversary of the Bandung Conference. He noted that Algeria was the first Arab country to establish a comprehensive strategic partnership with China. Both China and Algeria are important members of the Global South and influential forces on the international stage. They are also steadfast partners on the path of development. Li pointed out that industrialization is a key component of Chinese modernization and a foundational pillar of the “New Algeria” vision, highlighting the enormous potential and promising prospects for bilateral cooperation.
Fouad Chalabi, Advisor to the Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, National Community Abroad and African Affairs of Algeria, spoke on behalf of the participants. He expressed his appreciation to the Chinese side for organizing the first seminar for Algerian officials and noted that the program’s design closely aligns with Algeria’s development priorities. He hoped to draw valuable lessons from China’s effective development experiences across multiple fields and believed that this seminar would help deepen dialogue and cooperation between the two sides while contributing to their joint efforts to tackle global challenges.
Following the opening ceremony, Secretary-General Wang Guangda delivered a keynote lecture titled “The Development Path and Experience of China’s Industrial and Manufacturing Sectors” to the participants. He provided an in-depth overview of China’s unique industrial development journey, stressing that manufacturing is the backbone of a nation’s economic rise. He expressed China’s willingness to join hands with Algeria to integrate China’s industrial chain advantages with Algeria’s rich resource endowment and market potential, exploring together a new path of green, smart, inclusive, and shared industrialization.
This seminar is the 25th session hosted by the Center, with more than 600 mid- to high-level officials from Arab countries trained to date. Over the course of the ten-day seminar, Algerian participants will engage in in-depth discussions on topics including the development path and experience of China’s industrial and manufacturing sectors, the modernization of Songjiang District through science and technology, culture and ecology, the Yangtze River Delta G60 Sci-Tech Innovation Corridor, China’s reform and opening-up experience, as well as China’s multilateralism and engagement with the Global South.
Participants will also conduct site visits to COMAC (Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China) and SAIC Motor Passenger Vehicle Company’s Lingang production base to gain firsthand insights into China’s industrial vitality and technological achievements. They will visit the G60 Sci-Tech Innovation Corridor Exhibition Hall to learn about the high-quality, integrated development of the regional economy; and explore cutting-edge technologies through visits to companies such as Westwell (AI logistics), United Imaging (medical technology), and Keenon Robotics (smart automation), gaining a close-up look at China’s innovation in digitalization, automation, and biomedicine.
In addition, the participants will travel to Yangzhou to further experience the latest outcomes of China’s high-quality development in various sectors.