The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) is the premier academic organization and comprehensive research center of the People’s Republic of China in the fields of philosophy and social sciences.

The Institute of West-Asian and African Studies (IWAAS) of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) was established on July 4th 1961 on the instructions of Chairman Mao Zedong.

ournal of West Asia and Africa was first published in 1980 and is a comprehensive academic research journal sponsored by the West Asia and Africa Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The Chinese Society of Asian and African Studies (CSAAS) is one of the earliest academic societies established in China to study international issues.

The Chinese Association of Middle East Studies was established in July 1982 in Kunming, Yunnan province. A total of 91 experts and scholars on the Middle East from 42 scientific research institutions, universities and colleges, and foreign affairs departments attended the conference.

The Gulf Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) was established on 19 September 1995 at the Institute of West-Asia and Africa Studies (IWAAS).

The former body of the Centre of Southern African Studies was the Division of Southern African Studies founded in 1978 when IWAAS was resumed.

The Centre of Development and Governance in the Middle East of IWAAS was founded in June 2020 with the approval of Bureau of Scientific Research Management of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS).

The Center for African Laws of IWAAS was founded on August 3, 2020 with the approval of Bureau of Scientific Research Management of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS).