As the 48th WorldSkills Competition kicks off in Shanghai, SSPU is celebrating its 66th anniversary. During this special time, delegations from Austria, Burkina Faso, Canada, Kazakhstan and Singapore successively visited SSPU. A series of multi-level, wide-ranging exchange and cooperation activities have been held, fully demonstrating the vitality and influence of the university’s international engagement. Xie Huaqing, President of SSPU, and Liu Yan, Deputy Party Secretary of SSPU Party Committee, attended relevant events.
On September 22, SSPU successfully hosted the WorldSkills Shanghai 2026 One School One Member Event with the Austrian delegation. Liu Yan attended and delivered a speech on behalf of the university. She noted that the event focused on skills exchange and cultural mutual learning, aiming to foster in-depth interaction and sincere dialogue among young people of the two nations beyond the competition. The Austrian delegation expressed gratitude for the thoughtful arrangements to experience authentic Chinese culture ahead of their WorldSkills journey.
On the same day, DABIRE CONSTANTIN MANIENOU, Vice President of Nazi BONI University in Burkina Faso, visited SSPU. He held in-depth discussions with Deputy Secretary Liu Yan and the representative of the School of Vocational Education on advancing cooperation in vocational training programs. The Vice President also stated that he felt honored to be visiting the university during its celebration on the 66th anniversary.
On September 23, Maxime Hupé, Consul of the Consulate General of Canada in Shanghai, led representatives from Northern Alberta Institute of Technology and Southern Alberta Institute of Technology to visit SSPU. President Xie Huaqing extended a warm welcome to the delegation, expressing hope for fruitful cooperation in disciplines of mutual interest and the early implementation of joint projects. Deputy Secretary Liu Yan said that the visiting Canadian institutions share many similarities with SSPU, including comparable founding histories, and called for enhanced exchanges and collaboration. On behalf of his delegation, the Consul thanked the university for its hospitality and stated that the Consulate General would actively promote high-level partnerships between higher education institutions in China and Canada. The two sides discussed and reached preliminary consensus on potential areas such as the signing of a memorandum of understanding, faculty and student exchanges and joint research.
On the morning of September 24, a vocational education delegation from Almaty, Kazakhstan, visited SSPU. During the meeting, Liu Yan remarked that SSPU has accumulated rich experience and yielded fruitful outcomes in vocational education. The university and the three vocational schools affiliated to SSPU are willing to build deep exchanges and collaboration with the institutions in the delegation. The Kazakh side thanked SSPU for the thorough arrangements and expressed the wish for more future exchange opportunities.
In the afternoon, Russell Chan, President of Nanyang Polytechnic, Singapore, led a delegation to SSPU, where President Xie Huaqing met with the guests. Russell Chan noted that this visit marked his first overseas visit in his capacity as President of Nanyang Polytechnic. He was deeply impressed by the campus environment and specialized laboratories, and congratulated both institutions on the successful inaugural of the Overseas Education and Learning Program for Nanyang Polytechnic. Xie Huaqing reviewed the history of bilateral cooperation and outlined SSPU’s development achievements and schooling characteristics since its founding. Building on the successful short-term study program, he proposed further exploration of partnerships including faculty and student mobility, university-enterprise collaboration and joint internship programs. At the meeting, the two Presidents formally signed an the memorandum of understanding.
All above visiting delegations consisted of faculty or student participating in the 48th WorldSkills Competition. They respectively had a campus tour and visited specialized laboratories and expressed confidence in the prospects for future cooperation with SSPU. Representatives and heads from relevant university departments attended the above events.
