On the morning of September 11, our institute held an online meeting with the University of the West Indies(UWI), focusing on the two universities' collaborative education program, the UWI China Institute of Information Technology(UWI-CIIT). Both sides jointly reviewed the achievements of UWI-CIIT program over the past decade and engaged in candid exchange and discussion regarding the current difficulties and challenges facing the program as well as its future development path, reaching consensus on many issues. Prof. Zhang Jianchu, President of our institute, Deputy Director Lu Huixing of the International College, Min Rong and Huang Yi from the International College attended the meeting, while Prof. Canute Thompson, Pro Vice-Chancellor and Chair of the Board for Undergraduate Studies, Ms. Dian Bailey, Program Officer of the Board for Undergraduate Studies, Ms Janet Grant, Administrative Officer of the Board for Undergraduate Studies and Mr. Justin Seale, Assistant Registrar of the program attended the meeting on behalf of UWI.

At the meeting, President Zhang Jianchu reviewed and summarized the ten-year development journey and fruitful achievements of the two universities' collaborative education program. He noted that this year marks the tenth anniversary of the founding of the UWI-CIIT, jointly established by our institute and UWI, which stands as an important milestone in international educational cooperation between the two institutions. Over the past decade, both sides have deepened practical cooperation and continuously advanced transnational joint talent cultivation programs, delivering a large number of high-quality, application-oriented software technology professionals to the Caribbean region. He pointed out that this cooperative project has become an important bridge and distinctive benchmark for higher education exchanges and mutual learning between China and the Caribbean, with solid and impressive results and far-reaching demonstrative significance.

Pro Vice-Chancellor Canute Thompson spoke highly of the achievements of the two universities' decade-long cooperation. He stated that The UWI attaches great importance to its cooperation with Suzhou Global Institute and highly commends the program's talent cultivation quality and cooperative value. He expressed the hope that both sides will take this meeting as a new starting point, stay true to the original purpose of cooperation, consolidate the foundation of collaboration, and continue to deepen cooperation in areas such as education and teaching as well as talent cultivation, so as to steadily advance the international cooperation endeavors of both universities and achieve even greater success.

While fully affirming the achievements of the decade-long collaborative program, participants from both sides also pointed out the current difficulties and challenges facing the program. They held active discussions on strengthening coordination and alignment between the two sides, optimizing the program’s curriculum design, and expanding areas of cooperation, and identified the paths for future development.

The convening of this meeting will play a positive role in enhancing communication and understanding between the two institutions, deepening mutual cooperation, and promoting the stable and sustainable development of the collaborative program between the two sides.