A delegation of China-Africa Institute (CAI) arrived in Djibouti city, the capital of the Republic of Djibouti on the morning of June 30, 2024 for academic exchanges. Members of the delegation include Professor Wang Xiaoming, Vice President of the CAI; Wang Jian, Director of Library and Information Department of the CAI; Li Wengang, Director of the Division of Ethnic and Religious Studies of the CAI and Shen Xiaolei, Deputy Director of the Division of Political Studies of the CAI.

An overwhelming heatwaves were rushing towards them, as the delegation members stepped out from the airplane cabin door. According to the weather forecast, the temperature in Djibouti City reached 45 Degree Celsius.

Soon after checking into the hotel, the delegation had a meeting with officials of Institut des études Diplomatiques (IED). The IED, under the supervision of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Djibouti, organizes academic meetings, language programs, TOEFL tests and Chinese language tests. The IED has been in collaboration with the Africa Union (AU) and Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) since this year, and has hosted more than 10 academic meetings and forums, covering topics such as regional integration, regional economy development, digital economy transformation and integration of traditional culture and modernization. It also offers Chinese language courses primarily for senior officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Djibouti.

Building entrance at IED

The IED teaching buildings were constructed with the help of China, with meeting rooms and classrooms decorated with Chinese elements.

CAI delegation and IED officials are having meeting

In the meeting, Aden Abelallah, director of the Student Affairs Office of IED, and Haussein Abdullah, deputy director of the Student Affairs Office of IED, expressed their gratitude for having the opportunity to communicate with a think tank from China. They hope to enhance cooperation with the CAI in jointly hosting academic meetings and conducting training programs. Professor Wang Xiaoming introduced the CAI’s the establishment, its major functions and academic exchange mechanism. She said, the CAI is willing to promote academic exchange and cooperative research with the IED, and to foster people-to-people exchanges and China-Djibouti relations.

After the meeting, the delegation took a tour around the IED, focusing on classrooms for Chinese language. The Chinese language program offered by IED is designed primarily for government officials. Each year 25 to 30 students are enrolled in the course which is divided into two semesters, offering two hour of lesson for each class and three lessons per week. Standing in front of a map of China, Haussein Abdullah who has previously studied in China talked about Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hangzhou and other Chinese cities he went to.

Haussein Abdullah is talking about the Chinese cities

The delegation also paid a visit to Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway Control Center. The Chinese-built Ethiopia-Djibouti Railway has recently celebrated its achievements in six years of commercial operation. At the ceremony in Addis Ababa, the Chinese team announced the conclusion of its participation in the railway's operation and maintenance. Zhang Xudong, Director of the Control Center briefed the delegation on the freight and passenger transportation of the railway. He said that as a flagship program of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway plays an formative role in fostering connectivity, and driving economic growth and employment in the Horn of Africa. However, there are still room for improvement including freight loading, dispatch management, rules and regulations and personnel training etc.

Zhang Xudong is introducing Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway at the control center

Freight train of Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway

Passenger train of Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway

In the evening, the CAI delegation visited the Chinese Embassy in Djibouti. H.E. Ambassador Hu Bin made a detailed introduction about the political, economic, diplomatic and security situation of Djibouti and the development of strategic partnership between China and Djibouti. He noted that with closer political and economic ties, China and Djibouti should also strengthen their cultural exchanges. He said, the CAI is the first national-level think tank to visit Djibouti in recent years, which came just at the right time, and is of strategic significance for enriching the connotation of China-Djibouti relations. Shen Sha, Political Counsellor of The Chinese Embassy in Djibouti, and Attaché Ding Meizhu also attended in the meeting.

Group photo (from left to right: Ding Meizhu, Li Wengang, Wang Xiaoming, Hu Bin, Wang Jian, Shen Sha, Shen Xiaolei)