STORY: Ambitious Kenyan students set goals for further studies in China
DATELINE: July 10, 2023
LENGTH: 00:04:13
LOCATION: Nairobi
CATEGORY: EDUCATION

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the seminar
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (English): ELIZABETH SAMBASI, Student
3. various of teachers and students
4. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): JACOB OLOO, Student
5. various of teachers and students visiting China-built projects

STORYLINE:

A group of 52 Kenyan students who have applied for Chinese government scholarships wrapped up a two-day seminar at Kenya's port city, Mombasa, on Sunday, with the participants expressing their willingness to promote the friendship between the two countries.
   
Over the weekend, the students visited the Global Trade Center in Nairobi, the capital of the East African country, and Afristar, the company operating the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), two flagship projects highlighting China-Kenya cooperation.
   
Officials from Kenya's Ministry of Education, the Chinese Embassy in Nairobi and the Kenya-China Alumni Association also joined the discussion at the seminar.
   
The students who are set to pursue their studies in universities across China vowed to make full use of the opportunity and serve as ambassadors for friendship between the two countries to enhance bilateral cooperation featuring sincerity, real results, amity and good faith.
   
Darius Mogaka Ogutu, director of Higher Education at the Ministry of Education, said he was grateful to the Chinese government for providing scholarships for Kenyan students.
   
"This is an opportunity for you to shine, for you to come back to share (what you have learned), and build your country and encourage more people," Ogutu said, adding that thousands of Kenyan youths have pursued their higher education in China and contributed a lot in their fields.
   
During the seminar, Chinese Ambassador to Kenya Zhou Pingjian told the students that understanding China's people-centered philosophy will greatly help them understand the nation and better pursue their studies.
   
Underlining the long-lasting friendship between China and Kenya, Zhou said every Kenyan student in China is an envoy of the people-to-people exchange. He encouraged all students to strive for promoting in-depth development of the comprehensive strategic and cooperative partnership between the two countries.
   
Elizabeth Sambasi who applied for an undergraduate degree in data science and dig data technology at Donghua University in Shanghai told Xinhua that cooperation between the two countries ranges from infrastructure construction to science and technology.
   
SOUNDBITE 1 (English): ELIZABETH SAMBASI, Student
"I chose China because China is a fast-evolving country. It is really evolving and it is very good in technology."

Jacob Oloo has applied for a Ph.D. in information technology from several universities in Beijing.
 
SOUNDBITE 2 (English): JACOB OLOO, Student
"China's education is good, and its universities are offering quality education. They have good supervisors. And you can see China is taking up the whole world in terms of technology. Being a student of technology and public management, I'd like to go and get a quality education, then come back to Kenya and help my country to progress in the economy."

Since 1982, the Chinese government has provided scholarships for thousands of Kenyan students.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Nairobi.
(XHTV)