China’s Tsinghua University, a higher learning institution that is ranked as Asia’s best, has established a field station for international and area studies at the University of Rwanda (UR) in Kigali

Inaugurated on Thursday, May 9, the station falls under Tsinghua’s Institute for International and Area Studies (IIAS), an independent research institute of the university that conducts studies of countries across the globe, with a particular emphasis on the history and culture, domestic and foreign affairs, as well as social development of developing countries.

Speaking at its launch, Zhao Jinsong, Associate Director of IIAS at Tsinghua University, highlighted that 'Area Studies' is ascending to prominence as a top-tier academic discipline in China’s education system.

"Our students are spread across diverse regions from Eurasia to the Caribbean, and from Southeast Asia to Sub-Saharan Africa, mastering everything from law and economics to history and literature. In today’s interconnected world, we’re all about understanding different cultures and tackling the big issues that matter to local communities,” he said.

He pointed to the profound importance of understanding diverse cultures and addressing pressing issues within local communities in the increasingly interconnected world, noting that the IIAS has embarked on forging partnerships across the world, resulting in the establishment of overseas field stations on various continents.

"Today, we are honoured to commence our institutional cooperation with the University of Rwanda with firm steps to further enhance our academic exchanges. I am convinced that our mutual efforts will make this partnership a full success and guide us towards a higher level of Area Studies research community,” he noted.

UR’s Deputy Vice Chancellor for Finance, Francoise Kayitare Tengera, welcomed the IIAS station at the university, saying it will take the mutual business between the two institutions to higher levels.

"It is not arbitrary that Tsinghua University sought that this IIAS station be hosted within the University of Rwanda. Rather, it is a deliberate decision which came from the good will for establishing strong ties and collaboration between our two sister institutions. This will, with no doubt, take our mutual business to higher levels,” she pointed out.

He praised the MoU between the IIAS and UR as broad enough to encompass rich academic objectives, including exchange of academic and administrative staff and students, cooperation and promotion of joint research and publication, and participation in academic activities.

Attending the launch, Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda, Wang Xuekun, pointed out that the IIAS station at UR is the only Tsinghua University field station in Africa.

"It represents a milestone in academic exchanges and cooperation between China and Rwanda. I believe this will greatly enhance mutual understanding of our two counties, and provide valuable reference for policymakers. It will also help the people of the two countries to know each other better, thus laying a foundation for their exchanges and friendship,” he noted.

In terms of general relations between China and Rwanda, he said Rwanda is of importance to China not only academically.

"As a matter of fact, over the past 53 years since 1971, our two countries have built a fully-fledged relationship. It’s a relationship based on similar historical experience of colonisation and exploitation by Western powers. It’s a relationship motivated by shared aspirations for prosperity of our countries and welfare of our peoples,” he asserted.

Assistant Director Dr Yang Chongsheng, an Assistant Professor at the IIAS, said Tsinghua University is eager to collaborate in enhancing research capabilities, hosting academic conferences together, as well as inviting scholars from various parts of the country, and much more.

"We plan to host conferences and discussions on regional affairs and topics of mutual concern as residents of this region. Secondly, we aim to conduct disciplinary and methodological training workshops to enhance the academic research capabilities of our members. Thirdly, we intend to invite scholars from various countries to Kigali to engage in discussions on topics of their interests, utilising Kigali as a mutual venue,” he noted.

The IIAS seeks to advance foundational area studies on six regions: Southeast Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, South Asia, Eurasia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and West Asia and North Africa, encouraging researchers to conduct foundational and country-specific or region-specific research from the perspective of political science, economics, sociology, public administration, history, or law, or from an interdisciplinary angle.

Zhang Shuibei, a visiting scholar from Tsinghua and a PhD student researching Rwanda’s tourism policy, said the collaboration between the two universities provides mutual benefits

"We think the Rwandan scholars have a lot of work to present in China about the country’s development history, local ambitions et cetera. As Chinese scholars, we want to share our development experience to the local academic communities too. That is why we built this field station,” she said.