The delegation of Wuxi Vocational Institute of Commerce receives the licence of the new university in Cambodia on Nov 14. [Photo/wxic.edu.cn]

Cambodia will have its first Chinese University in the Sihanoukville special economic zone (SEZ), Sihanoukville Institute of Business and Technology, according to an agreement signed by the Cambodian Council of Ministers in October.

The institute, jointly developed by Wuxi-based garment giant Hodo Group and Wuxi Vocational Institute of Commerce, will be the first of its kind.

The Wuxi Vocational Institute of Commerce established an overseas higher education institute, the Sihanouk Special Economic Zone Training Center, in Sihanoukville SEZ under the China-pioneered Belt and Road Initiative in 2012, training up to 35,000 local workers in Cambodia.

In a meeting between Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen in January, Wuxi Vocational Institute of Commerce, Hodo Group and the Sihanouk Special Economic Zone Training Center in Cambodia signed an agreement to reinforce professional technology training, continue teacher education and deepen culture exchanges.

The institute welcomes international students with open arms and has created a precedent for domestic enterprises which invest abroad to develop local talents and technologies.

The Chinese and Cambodian sides exchange ideas on school construction. [Photo/wxic.edu.cn]

The Sihanoukville special economic zone (SEZ), jointly developed by Hodo Group and Cambodia International Investment Development Group in 2017, has also made efforts to help poor people in Cambodia.

The Sihanoukville SEZ has been recognized as a place of economic significance by the local government, providing over 20,000 jobs for locals. More necessary human resource services, especially bilingual (Chinese and Cambodian) talents, are expected to develop in the new institute.