A reinforced partnership with China
The April 24, 2024 de 00:00 à 00:00
This year marks 60 years of diplomatic relationships between France and China. In celebration of this anniversary, a delegation from the University of Angers visited China late April.
The Board of Directors of the Joint Institute of the Universities of Ningbo and Angers met on 24 April.The UA delegation took part in the tenth board meeting of the French-Chinese Icuna institute (Joint institute between the universities of Ningbo and Angers). Created in 2016, the institute is housed within the University of Ningbo, a partner institution of Esthua, UA’s Faculty of Tourism, Culture and Hospitality.
Icuna is located in the province of Zhejiang and is recognised by the Chinese government as the only Sino-European school specialising in tourism. It offers double degrees at undergraduate and graduate levels in tourism management, geography and fashion, based on an intensive French language learning for Chinese students.
On the board’s agenda: the 2024 budget and validation of the funding of a 5th contract professor and researcher from the university of Ningbo. Françoise Grolleau, President of the University of Angers, explains that one of Icuna's objectives is to reach 1,100 students enrolled in its courses, compared with 952 today.
Agreement signed with Sodexo
The UA delegation led by the President of the university, Françoise Grolleau, and the director of Esthua, Jean-René Morice, went to China to take part in the tenth Sino-European Symposium on “Tourism, Cultural Heritage and Civilisational Exchanges”. They were joined by other delegates from Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Czech Republic and Morocco.
This tenth conference coincided with the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relationships between China and France. “Our profession helps to build this diplomacy between our countries - it is not only symbolical, it is real. It is important to develop it and I would like to sincerely thank all those who contribute to the growth and prosperity of these diplomatic relationship”, declared Françoise Grolleau in her inaugural speech.
As 2024 is also the the French-Chinese year of cultural tourism, a dinner was organised to promote French gastronomy, art of the table and food and wine pairings. The UA delegation was joined by elected officials from the city of Angers, the Michelin-starred chef Pascal Favre d’Anne, winemakers from the Pays-de-la-Loire region, Jean-Michel Monnier, associate professor and director of Esthua’s Wine tourism bachelor's degree, and Sylvain Dourneau coordinator of the Angers Gastronomy Campus. Ahead of the dinner, an agreement was also signed with Sodexo Shanghai, a company specialising in the outsourcing of services, to offer internship placements to Esthua and Icuna students.
