Graduation Ceremony of 2018 "Master's Degree In Developing Countries"is held By Emerging Markets Institute(EMI)

On June 27^th, the 2018 Graduation Ceremony of the Master’s Programme for Developing Countries was held at Beijing Normal University. The "Master's degree in developing countries" program is a high-end degree education exchange program organized by the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Education on behalf of the Chinese government, focusing on the training of middle and senior economic management cadres from developing countries. This project is undertaken by the Emerging Markets Instituteand the Belt and Road Research Institute of Beijing Normal University .

This year, 45 economic management professionals from 24 countries were awarded degrees, and five ambassadors from countries along the Belt and Road were conferredDistinguishedProfessors' Certificates. Zhou Zuoyu, vice president of Beijing Normal University;Djoomart Otorbaev, Distinguished Professor of EMI, former prime minister of Kyrgyzstan; Harinder Kohli, Distinguished Professor of EMI, Chief Executive of the US Emerging Markets Forum; Jose Ignacio Nievas, North Country Manager, Greater China of Inditex; Vice President of Academy for International Business Officials (AIBO), Ministry of Commerce, Liu Mingzhe; Member of the Standing Committee of the CPC of Jizhou District, and Executive Deputy Head of Jizho District, Tianjin, Qin Chuan; and other Chinese and foreign personage attended the ceremony and made a speech.

Vice President Zhou Zuoyu congratulated the graduates of the EMI 2018 Master’s Programme for Developing Countries on their successful graduation. He also extended his congratulations to the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Education, and the China Scholarship Council (CSC), which care and support the participants. He also expressed his thanks to Leaders and staff of embassies in China and Chinese embassies abroad who facilitated the programme. He pointed out that with the deepening of the concept of the community of shared future for mankind, emerging market countries are playing an increasingly important role in the process of economic globalization. As outstanding reserve talents in the economic construction of various countries; graduates of developing countries should resort to the Emerging Markets Institute, an international think-tank platform that integrates science, teaching and high-end consulting, to apply what they have learned to the construction of their respective countries, and to contribute to the realization of the great community of shared future for mankind.

In former Kyrgyz Republic Prime Minister Otorbaev’s  speech,  he said China will play an increasingly important role in the international arena with the announcement of the "Belt and Road" initiative, and that China will be more open, better communicated with the world. As the world is in the midst of an important transformation, he encourages graduates to continue their efforts to see the world as a community of shared future for mankind, to remain ambitious and devote to global peace and prosperity. And he delivered his wishes to all graduates a bright future.

"what you see in China is a miracle of modern development." Harinder Kohli, Distinguished Professor of EMI at Beijing normal University and Chief Executive of the US Emerging Markets Forum, told the graduates. He said China has gone from being a poor country to becoming a world power, not just the world's second-largest economy, but also showing all sorts of dynamism in emerging fields such as artificial intelligence. This implies that developing countries such as Africa and Latin America have similar unlimited future and potential. He told the graduates that each country has its own unique advantages and should make its own development path according to its national conditions. And wish they were now Personal success can lead to national success in the future.

At the ceremony, the Ambassador extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the people's Democratic Republic of Algeria to China, Ahcène Boukhelfa; the Ambassador extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Tonga to China, Tau'aika 'Uta'atu;Ambassador extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Zambia to China, Winnie Natala Chibesakunda; andKumba Alice Momoh, Acting Head of Mission of the Sierra Leone Embassy to China, were appointed as the consultants to the Emerging Markets Institute and the Belt and Road Research Institute. Zhou Zuoyu, vice president of Beijing Normal University, Hu Biliang, Dean of the Emerging Markets Institute and Belt and Road Research Institute, presented the certificate of appointment to the ambassadors. The appointed ambassadors delivered a speech respectively at the scene.

Zambia's ambassador to China, Winnie Natala Chibesakunda, spoke affectionately about her days abroad. “Four of today's masters graduates are from Zambia", she said."I send my appreciate to Beijing Normal University for bringing us such educational opportunities. When you get a government position or a position in other fields in future, you must be grateful for the experience gained today at Beijing Normal University. Because in this country, what you gain is not just knowledge, but more importantly, experience and what you see and hear, which will really help you." Ambassador Winnie said.

At the ceremony, Mr. Jose Ignacio Nievas, as an entrepreneur representative, presented certificates of honour to excellent students and scholars. Romtham Khumnurak, student representative, a graduate from Thailand, made a small joke in his graduation speech. He said he not only learned a lot of knowledge in China, but also learned Taobao and JD.Romtham said that a year at BNU had enabled him to know a better China; As well as a better understanding of the world. He said that he would cherish the friendships with his classmates from other Belt and Road along developing countries and after returning from China, hoping to create opportunities to combine the national construction to the implementation of the“Belt and Road”projects with a purpose of contributing better to the economic growth. He then, expressed the hopes that The "Belt and Road" initiative has become a common development path for different countries and regions."Stay true to the Mission, and forge ahead." The graduate ended his speech with this sentence and brought to a successful end of the 2018 Master’s programme in developing countries.

At the end of the ceremony, Hu Biliang, Dean of Emerging Markets  Institute, Belt and RoadResearch Institute, sent the graduation blessing to all graduates. In view of the work background and development prospects of this year's graduates, and in connection with China's commemoration of the 40th anniversary of reform and opening up, he put forward two hopes for the graduates: first, "we all come from developing countries, Development is the absolute principle."He said. “It is a very important basic thinking to persist in solving problems through and in the course of development.”Second, he emphasized China's development experience in the past 40 years, which has provided a basic reference for other developing countries. Including efforts to explore development paths that are appropriate to national conditions, rather than copying the development of other countries; To develop the "model" that adhere to the reform of market orientation;To promote integration into the global opening;To maintain the stability of the country's political society;To formulate and effectively implement the development plan that links both short-term and long-term periodic blueprints of the country and the region; and to vigorously develop education, especially basic education, six areas. He then, expressed the hope that after graduating and returning from China, graduates would make concrete contributions to the development of their countries, and to the improvement of their population’s living standards by applying the knowledge they has learned in China to their own development practices.

The ceremony was presided over by Professor Pan Qingzhong, AssociateDean of Emerging Markets Institute, Belt and Road Research Institute. Senior diplomats and more than 100 entrepreneurs from countries along the Belt and Road attended the graduation ceremony.