Chinese Ambassador to Mozambique Sun Jian said Monday that China will increase its support in the training of Mozambican youths, providing scholarships for more than 100 Mozambican students to study in Chinese universities in 2017.

Under an initiative called Friendship of the Chinese People for the African Civil Society, China will also donate 58,000 U.S. dollars to Mozambique’s education, said the ambassador on a donation ceremony in the Chinese embassy.

Currently, there are an estimated 500 Mozambicans studying in China and more than 100 returned to Mozambique after graduating with bachelor’s or master’s degrees in China last year.

Chinese companies operating in Mozambique have been doing their best to integrate the workforce trained in China, Sun said.

Mety Gondola, general secretary of the Mozambican youth league of the ruling Frelimo party, recognized the important part that China has been playing in the history of Mozambique’s development.

“Our relations date back to before the country’s independence. As young people we are interested in embracing Chinese people and making this cooperation eternal. With this gesture, we just started a new chapter and we would like to make the relations fruitful,” said Gondola.

Agriculture is one sector that the youth organization is willing to invest in with the donation as it is fundamental for the Mozambique’s development.

Source: ECNS