Lanzhou opens business school for international trade

Lanzhou University of Finance and Economics held the opening ceremony of its Central Asia Business School on Dec 23, 2015, the Xinhuanet reported.

The business school will offer courses for bachelor and master degrees, including an MBA, to cultivate international business talents for the countries along the Belt and Road, which refers to the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, said Fu Deyin, principal of the university.

The school will focus on developing think tanks which will solve theoretical and practical problems during the implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative and provide intellectual support and policy advice for government and business.

One of the first nine students, Wei Na, from Uzbekistan said that an increasing number of people in Uzbekistan have started to learn Chinese, adding "I knew Chinese from my relatives and grew interested in the language. I came to China with my sister to get further understanding of the country and its language."

To promote international exchanges, Lanzhou University of Finance and Economics joined the "Belt and Road" Universities Alliance in October, 2015 and established cooperative relationships with Ural State University in Russia and Tashkent State University of Economics in Uzbekistan.

The "Belt and Road" Universities Strategic Alliance was set up on Oct 17, 2015 in Dunhuang city, Gansu province. Its members include 46 universities and colleges from eight countries, including Chinese Fudan University, Beijing Normal University, Lanzhou University and Pukyong National University in South Korea.

Edited by Peter Nordlinger