Weaving a tale of textile cooperation

An old Chinese proverb states that a cloth is not woven from a single thread. This implies that to achieve success, human beings need to join hands and help each other in advancing to the next level. That is the case at Kenya's Moi University in Eldoret town where a collaboration with Donghua University has helped in reviving the country's textile industry.

Kenya's textile industry was facing serious challenges with many factories closing shop. At Rivatex East Africa Limited, the leading textile company in the country, business was booming until the 1990s. Imports of cheap synthetic fibers cornered Rivatex to the edge of closure because of its inability to compete.

Moi University acquired the facility in 2007, and the factory started to modernize in 2010. Currently, it is at 90 percent level of modernization.

Li Wei, deputy president of Donghua University said that the collaboration between Donghua University and Moi University which started in 2008 was stepped up in 2015 when they established the first, and currently only Confucius Institute featuring textile and apparel, at Moi University. So far, up to 31 teachers and students from Donghua University have been to the Confucius Institute as volunteers.

The collaboration between Moi University and Donghua University has helped Rivatex as a factory to fast track its labor skill-set to be able to handle the modern machinery acquired since the factory was revived.