On the morning of June 5, a delegation from Fukuyama City University led by President of Fukuyama City UniversitySato Toshiyuki, President of the Shibuya Education Association of Fukuyama TransportingKomaruNaruyo paid an exchangevisit to CNU. President of CNU Fang Fuquan, Director of the Office of International Cooperation & ExchangeHan Mei, Dean of the College of Preschool EducationKang Liying, Deputy Director of the Office of International Cooperation & ExchangeLu Qiaomei, Deputy Dean of the School of Management Long Yuqi,Deputy Dean of the College of International EducationLi Bingzhen, Executive Deputy Dean of the Joint Graduate School of Hiroshima University and CNULi Junyang, Deputy Director of the Beijing Research Center of Hiroshima UniversityZhang Lixin, etc. attended the meeting, which was chaired by Han Mei.

Fang Fuquan warmly welcomed the delegation led by Sato Toshiyuki and introduced CNU’s achievements in the “Double First-Class Initiative” (build world first-class universities and first-class academic disciplines) and academic discipline constructionin recent years, as well as new initiatives such as three strategies for the“14thFive-Year Plan” (the strategy of rejuvenating China through science and education, the strategy of strengthening China through talents, and the strategy of innovation-driven development)and the “Climbing Plan”. Fang Fuquan hopes that both sides can establish in-depth cooperation in faculty and student exchange, cooperative research, Chinese-based programs and cultural exchanges after this meeting.

Sato Toshiyuki expressed his gratitude to CNU for organizing the meeting. He shared his story with CNU. It has been 22 years since his first academic visit to CNU, during which he strove to promote Sino-Japanese educational exchanges and jointly established the Beijing Research Center of Hiroshima University, the first overseas research center of Japan. On this basis, the two sides have carried out various exchangeand cooperation programs, and have fostered a firm and deep friendship. As the current President of Fukuyama City University, Sato Toshiyuki looks forward to similarly deep and lasting cooperation between Fukuyama City University and CNU.

Subsequently, a signing ceremony for the cooperation agreement between Fukuyama City University and CNU was held.

Fukuyama City University is the first Japanese public university thatis equipped with a college of education (with child education programs) and a college of city management. After the signing ceremony, Kang Liying, Li Bingzhen and Long Yuqi had preliminary discussions on forms of cooperation in preschool education, international Chinese education, public management, etc., such as faculty and student exchange, short-term educational internship, training of local Chinese teachers in Japan, and dual-degree undergraduate and postgraduate programs.

This meeting lays a good foundation forspecific cooperative projectsbetween the two universities.