Thailand, China establish Lu Ban High-Speed Railway Institute

BAN PHAI, Thailand - A pair of Chinese and Thai vocational colleges on Wednesday jointly announced the establishment of Lu Ban High-Speed Railway Institute in northeastern Thailand to train high-speed railway technicians.

The institute is set up at Banphai Industrial and Community Education College in Ban Phai district, Khon Kaen province, with the support from Wuhan Railway Vocational College of Technology (WRC).

With the donation of WRC's partner Zhengzhou J&T Hi-Tech Co Ltd., a simulation driving training base has been set up at Banphai Industrial and Community Education College for Thai students to practice.

"The Lu Ban High-Speed Railway Institute would help to develop Thai high-speed railway technicians, make educational plans such as 1 plus 1 or 1 plus 2 which means Thai students would study in Thailand for a year and go to China for another year or two years of study," Cheng Shixing, president of WRC, told Xinhua.

Cheng said the Lu Ban High-Speed Railway Institute would also include training of teachers and railway employees.

WRC started Sino-Thailand cooperative education program of railway talents in August 2015. Up to now, WRC has cultivated 103 Thai students from 33 vocational and technical colleges in 20 Thai provinces, Cheng said.

"They are the first batch of high-speed railway technicians China developed for Thailand and may also contribute to the construction of China-Thailand cooperative program of high speed railway," he said.

On the other hand, Junyar Pabu, director of Banphai Industrial and Community Education College, confirmed the effective cooperation with WRC.

"China has the most advanced high-speed railway technology while Thailand had no technology and no talents, as a result, we, assigned by the Office of the Vocational Education Commission of Thai ministry of education, reached out to the Chinese colleges and we got very positive responses from them," said Junyar.

Junyar believed the establishment of Lu Ban High-Speed Railway Institute would help to develop more talents for Thai railway industry.

A Chinese dean and a Thai dean of Lu Ban High-Speed Railway Institute have been appointed and they both expressed their willingness to promote China-Thailand educational cooperation on high-speed rail during the inauguration ceremony on Wednesday.

During the ceremony, Song Ruoyun, first secretary of Education Affairs of the Chinese Embassy to Thailand, said she expected the Lu Ban High-Speed Railway Institute to be a good example and provide the China-Thailand cooperative program of high speed railway with talents and technicians.

She also praised the Confucius Institute at Khon Kaen University and other Confucius Institutes for helping vocational colleges from both countries to cooperate under the Belt and Road Initiative and Thailand 4.0 strategy.

Liao Junyun, Consul General of the Chinese Consulate General in Khon Kaen, Panthong Srakhupan, Vice Governor of Khon Kaen Province as well as other Chinese and Thai government officials, representatives from companies, teachers and students attended the inauguration ceremony.