Irina Bokova, director general of UNESCO, writes an inscription for the UNESCO International Center for Higher Education Innovation based at the Southern University of Science and Technology on Saturday. Sun Yuchen

In a visit to the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) after the closing of the UNESCO High-level Forum on Museums on Saturday, Irina Bokova, director general of UNESCO, praised the university as a good platform for encouraging young minds to be innovative.

At a meeting with council members of SUSTech-based UNESCO International Center for Higher Education Innovation, Bokova hoped the center, one of the 10 UNESCO Category-II centers for education in the world, would further conduct cooperation with enterprises and become a high-level research institute. The institute was established in June this year and Li Ming, director of the center, said it would become an international platform for education reform and development, exhibiting successful practices of higher education in China.

“We aim at improving the quality of higher education and developing innovative talent through distance learning facilitated by information communication technology,” said Li.

The center can play a leading role and set an example by making use of enterprise resources and introducing Shenzhen’s practices to Asia-Pacific region countries, Li said.

The 38th Session of the General Conference of UNESCO approved the establishment of the international center for higher education innovation last year. (Han Ximin)

Editor: Jane Chen