I. Cooperation with Other Universities

The Joint Learning Centre of the OUC and OUT

The Joint Learning Centre (JLC), which was constructed with the mutual efforts of the Open University of China (OUC) and the Open University of Tanzania (OUT), was established in July 2018.

The JLC operates on a "one centre with a number of tutorial centres" basis, with its headquarters located in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and its first sub-tutorial centre in the Dodoma region. In the future, the JLC will focus on teaching Chinese as a foreign language based on a combination of online and offline teaching methods. It is hoped that teaching will gradually extend to other majors and both degree and non-degree programmes will be covered.

The Confucius Centre in Papua New Guinea

In September 2019, Yang Xiaotang, vice president of the OUC, Musawe Sinebare, chancellor of the University of Goroka, Teng Waninga, deputy vice-chancellor of the University of Goroka, and Mr. Robert Parua, project officer of the UNESCO Beijing Office, attended a launch ceremony for the Confucius Centre of the University of Goroka and signed a memorandum of cooperation between the two universities. The two sides intend to cooperate in the fields of personnel exchanges, education research, distance open education, cultural exchange, Chinese language teaching, and continuing education. At the same time, in order to promote economic and trade exchanges between the two countries, cooperative education in business management will be developed when the time is right.

OUC Learning Centre in Pakistan

In June 2014, the OUC signed a cooperation agreement with Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) in Pakistan, which agreed to carry out cooperation on Chinese language teaching and scientific research. In 2019, two cloud classrooms were set up at AIOU’s Islamabad and Multan tutorial centres, with plans to teach Chinese and deliver degree education in the surrounding areas.

II. Cooperation with Enterprises

With the aim of implementing the 13th Five Year Plan of the OUC and serving the national strategy of the Belt and Road Initiative, the OUC has worked with countries along the route of the Belt and Road Initiative in the construction of overseas learning centres. Efforts have been made to explore new methods for Chinese language and Chinese culture education in countries around the world and explore new collaboration models with enterprises for the construction of overseas learning centres. The OUC plans to establish a strategic partnership with China Nonferrous Metal Industry Talent Centre, and, relying on enterprises in the industry which have operations abroad, to set up overseas learning centres in countries that engage in industrial cooperation with China in the nonferrous metal industry in order to popularise industrial Chinese language learning and distance education.

In October 2017, the OUC Learning Centre in Zambia, the first OUC overseas learning centre, was established. Operating on a "one centre with a number of tutorial centres,” the centre has its main office in the headquarters of Zambia-China Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone (ZCCZ), with its first three tutorial centres located at ZCCZ, NFC Africa Mining PLC, and China Nonferrous Metal Mining Group (CNMC) Luanshya Copper Mines PLC. Chinese language training classes tailored for NFC Africa Mining PLC started at the beginning of October 2017 shortly before the launch of the OUC Learning Centre in Zambia.

In the future, the OUC plans to establish pilot overseas learning centres in Myanmar, Indonesia, and Kazakhstan in order to serve Chinese enterprises through education, improve the competitiveness of Chinese enterprises overseas, and explore new models for the development of overseas vocational education by means of cooperation with enterprises.

The construction of the OUC Learning Centre in Zambia aims to bring Chinese distance education standards and teaching models into countries engaging in capacity cooperation with China in the nonferrous metal industry. The cooperation between the OUC and CNMC also aims to use the OUC’s Credit Bank to provide overseas learners with the services for the storage, certification, accumulation, and conversion of learning achievements. Furthermore, it aims to jointly promote the in-depth cooperation between the OUC, Chinese distance education providers, and partner countries engaging in production capacity cooperation with China so improve the distance education capacity of these countries and cultivate industrial professionals who are friendly to and know a lot about China.

III．Cooperation with Overseas Chinese

Co-construction of a Learning Centre with Universal College of Malaysia

In December 2018, the OUC and Universal College of Malaysia signed a memorandum of cooperation in which they agreed to carry out cooperation in the fields of personnel exchange, Chinese language teaching, and the construction of an OUC overseas learning centre. In 2019, the two sides held in-depth discussions over the establishment of the OUC Learning Centre in Malaysia. The proposed learning centre will mainly engage in Chinese language training and teacher training, as well as distance open education degree programmes. Chinese language and literature, business administration, and e-commerce will be the first majors included in the pilot projects. Enrolment will be adjusted and expanded to other majors when the time is right. The OUC Learning Centre in Malaysia is mainly aimed at overseas Chinese in Malaysia, teachers and students of Chinese schools in Malaysia, staff of Chinese enterprises and institutions in Malaysia, Chinese studying, working, or doing business in Malaysia, and other people who are willing to enrol in related programmes of the OUC.

Yayasan Tarumanagara Foundation

In January 2020, the OUC signed a memorandum of cooperation with Indonesia's Yayasan Tarumanagara Foundation. The two sides intend to carry out personnel exchanges with the aim of exchanging experiences in teaching and research, curriculum design, online learning platform construction, and education management. A learning centre will be built in order to carry out online and offline academic and non-academic education, and areas of mutual interest will be identified for cooperative research projects. After the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020, the OUC immediately provided resources for Chinese language training in Indonesia.