HARARE, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwean think tank Southern African Research and Documentation Center (SARDC) has called for placing academic and research institutions at the core of China-Africa cooperation to shape dialogue, drive innovation, and promote inclusive development.
Speaking following the recent signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with China's Xiangtan University, SARDC Executive Director Joseph Ngwawi said Thursday that the partnership reflects a broader shift toward prioritizing education and research in Africa's engagement with China.
"Partnerships between African academic and research institutions and their Chinese counterparts are crucial to ensuring African agency in global development processes. Placing education and research at the center of China-Africa cooperation ensures that African perspectives are integral to shaping inclusive and sustainable global development," Ngwawi told Xinhua.
Ngwawi noted that SARDC views the MoU as more than a bilateral agreement, seeing it as a strategic platform to strengthen Zimbabwe-China relations and broader China-Africa cooperation.
"Through joint research, faculty and student exchanges, and collaborative publications, we expect this MoU to enhance the institutional capacity of SARDC and our partners to create opportunities for African scholars to engage in cross-cultural learning," Ngwawi said.
He added that the agreement will provide evidence-based knowledge to inform policy dialogue and embed academic collaboration into wider socio-economic frameworks by supporting government, enterprise, and think-tank projects.
Xiangtan University President Liao Yong'an, who was represented by Wang Weifeng, a research fellow and lecturer at the university's China-Africa Research Institute, described the signing as a starting point rather than an end in itself, according to a statement from SARDC.
"We hope this agreement will lead to concrete cooperation in the future, including joint research, academic exchanges, joint conferences and seminars, and exchanges between our scholars and students," Liao said.
SARDC is an independent regional knowledge resource based in Zimbabwe aimed at strengthening regional policy perspectives in southern Africa and beyond.
