Joint Research Centre-云南大学非洲研究中心 Center for African Studies Yunnan University

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The Joint Center of Studies on African Resources and Development Introduction
Published Time：2014-04-18 Print Close

Africa is known as “The raw material warehouse”. Its area is as vast as about 3020 square kilometers, in which both the traditional energy and the new energy are extremely rich, constituting a complement to the situation of natural resources in China. On the part of the “go global” strategy implemented by China that makes full use of two market, two resources in both international and domestic society, Africa should be taken seriously as an important factor in our country’s further development. However, in terms of currently domestic studies on Africa's resources—especially mineral resources—exploration, development, utilization , a bad situation that “much news reports, less analyses in depth; much brief mention, less specialized research; much single disciplinary studies, less interdisciplinary research ” is urgently required to improved.

On April 18 , 2012, sponsored by Chinese Society of African Studies, “the second African studies Forum and Sino-African Relations Seminar ” was held, on which a cooperation agreement that aims to jointly establish a “ Joint Center of Studies on African Resources and Development ” was formally signed by Institute of International Relations in Yunnan University and Yunnan Vocational College of Territorial Resources. Director-General of the Department of African Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Lu Xinye and Deputy Director of Publicity Department of Yunnan Provincial Party Committees Xuan Yucai hosted the unveiling ceremony of the Joint Center together. The two partners of the center have an advantage in certain disciplines and both of them have a strong ability to do science research. Leaded by Professor Liu Hongwu , the Center of African Studies in Yunnan University continuously expend the research team and enrich the research achievements, making itself be an increasingly important actor in domestic African Studies. Yunnan Vocational College of Territorial Resources is a kind of school with distinctive characteristics that focus on resources exploitation. There are 7 schools of same type across our country, and it is the only one in southwest area. The college has an obvious advantage in territorial resources, geology and mineral resources. Moreover, it has the ability to mobilize experts and scholars of many fields, such as territorial resources, geology and mineral resources, non-ferrous geology, geological survey and mapping, to participate in cooperate research within the scope of the province.

The Joint Center will devotes itself to making comprehensive and systematic research on African resources and development; it will makes efforts to send experts and scholars to Africa for field survey and analyze the first-hand data got through that way from both macroscopic and microscopic view; it will widely invites officials of some relevant governments and high-level researchers to participate in its activities, making itself be a platform for the mutual communication of scholars and the business circle. The Joint Center plans to issue “African Resources and Development Brief” in the near future, which aims to provide state or local governments and Chinese-funded enterprises in Africa that do business in this area or are interested in expending African market with real-time information on African resources policy, progress and current situation in resources exploitation, international cooperation. Furthermore, the publish of a “series of books on African Resources” is also being planned. The Joint Center of Studies on African Resources and Development works hard to make deeper research on African resources and development through many ways, such as conducting various academic exchange activities with other schools; completing some scientific research and development projects with some enterprises; reporting issues for getting Social and Science Fund from state, provincial relevant departments or the Ministry of Education, and it is also committed to making itself be an important part of domestic African Studies.