Zuma hails China-Africa education ties

South African President Jacob Zuma on Friday called on China and Africa to continue their shared commitment to education and innovation cooperation.

"As South Africa begins its tenure as co-chair of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation for the period 2012-2018, it is important that China and Africa continue their shared commitment to education, and innovation through research and development," Zuma said in a speech at Peking University.

The president also received an honorary professorship from the university, viewing it as "a symbol of the confidence the Chinese have in South Africa as an emerging country of the South, as well as a partner in the pursuit of a just international order.

"We believe that today marks the beginning of a new chapter in the educational relations between our two countries."

Zuma left Beijing on Friday afternoon, after meeting President Hu Jintao on Wednesday and attending the opening ceremony of the forum's Fifth Ministerial Meeting on Thursday.

China on Thursday announced it would award 200 scholarships to South African scholars. Participants at the forum agreed to implement the China-Africa Think Tank 10+10 Partnership Plan to select 10 think tanks from China and Africa to work together.

Besides the scholarships addressing the skills deficit, the country would also like to see the growing number of Chinese enterprises in South Africa partnering with it in empowering its people through skills development, said Zuma.

"The strong cooperation in this area will do much to improve South Africa's own achievements as we seek to become an economy that can respond to the challenges of the 21st century," he said.