Online Reporter
Freedom Mupanedemo in CHANGSHA, China
A CHINESE tertiary institution, Hunan International Business Vocational College (HIBVC), has invited over 20 media professionals from Zimbabwe for an exchange programme that is aimed at improving media coverage and reportage between the two countries as bilateral relations between Beijing and Harare continue to flourish.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the media professionals training seminar here yesterday, HIBVC vice president, Mr Gui Cheng, said the bilateral relations that bind China and Zimbabwe continue to grow, hence the need for media professionals from Zimbabwe to know more about the diverse culture, history, growth and other economic aspects of the Asian nation for enhanced economic and trade relations.
“We are glad to host our first group of media professionals from various media organisations in your country as the HIBVC. We hope for a very fruitful outcome as we will be taking you through some of the important aspects that the media needs to know about China, including the Republic’s profound history, culture and important events on the Chinese calendar, among others,” said Mr Gui.
The two-week seminar, Mr Gui said, will also involve some lectures and tutorials about the Asian country’s cultural diversity and its engagements with African countries in laying out development plans and strategies for domestic and international trade and economic cooperation.
He said the college, which is based in Changsha, the capital of Hunan Province, has over the years been engaging various developing countries that include Sudan and Burkina Faso for technical cooperation projects.
Speaking at the same ceremony, Herald Editor Victoria Ruzvidzo, who is leading the media professionals from Zimbabwe, appreciated the initiative by the Hunan International Business Vocational College.
She said the media industry was going through challenging times in the wake of the digital age and such exchange programmes, especially with developed media industries from China, were important.
“The media globally is going through a metamorphosis. The massive transformation to digital media has brought with it new opportunities and in some instances challenges to media houses. Being here (for the exchange programme) will help us become knowledgeable on how to tackle these challenges. We hope to take a lot back home in terms of strategies to help us operate better,” Ruzvidzo said.
China and Zimbabwe, she said, are long time partners in socio-economic cooperation.
“Our two countries have become great brothers over the years, and of course, China being the big brother. We have cooperated in many spheres across the political, economic, ecological and cultural divide,” Ruzvidzo said.
The seminar, which has brought together senior media personnel from both the private and public media in Zimbabwe, will run for two weeks in Changsha.
