As an international student in China, would you choose to stay or return home after graduation? On December 5th, a job fair and talent exchange forum was held to examine these two options and offer employment opportunities to African students studying in Guangdong. Over 300 African students, representatives from 150 enterprises, officials from over 10 consulates general of African countries in Guangzhou, and Chinese government officials attended the event.

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In 2018 500,000 international students were studying across China, 25,000 of whom were in Guangdong, according to Mr. Li Jinjun, Director of the Department of Education of Guangdong Province. Over 7,000 international students have gained scholarships from the Guangdong Provincial Government, worth a 90 million RMB, Li said.

Ms. Yang Huifang, Director of the Department of Science and Technology of Guangdong Province, said that since the work permit regulations for foreigners working in China started in 2017, 47,000 foreigners have obtained a work permit in Guangdong. Yang pointed out that the province has introduced many policies to attract foreign talent, including the Pearl River Talent Recruitment Program. People who are interested in the related polices can visit the official website of the science and technology department, Yang said.

Can international students work as a part-time tutor during their study in China? The answer is no, according to Mr. Chen Tao, the Team Leader of Visa from the Exit and Entry Administrations of Guangzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau. Chen explained that international students can only do part-time jobs on campus, and before they are going to take an off-campus internship, they need to apply for an additional note on their student visa first.  

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Mr. Musa Frimpong, an African student representative from Tsinghua University, shared his stories about both studying in China and starting a business. After graduation, Frimpong applied for the Start-up Visa in China and established his own company with offices in both China and Ghana. Frimpong emphasized that African students in China should study Chinese hard and get to know the culture. “Language is very important in China. If you speak Chinese, the opportunities are wide ranging,” Frimpong said, “But if you don’t, it is not an obstacle because there are other skills the companies need and other opportunities you can take.”

During the event, about 40 enterprises and associations set up booths to recruit employees, offering job opportunities in both China and Africa. Liu Yikai, a recruitment specialist for Guangdong Fecon Motorcycle Co., Ltd., told the reporter that they hope to find potential employees who have both the interest in and competency to expand the market in Africa.

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Babalola Mouyidine from Niger, majoring in International Business and Trade at the South China University of Technology (SCUT), told the reporter that he plans to continue his education elsewhere or go back home after graduation. Babalola will start his internship at a solar power firm in Guangzhou this week. The firm also has businesses in Niger, so Babalola believes an internship at this company might lead to a job opportunity for him back home in the future.

Over the past few years, Guangdong and Africa have maintained a solid relationship in terms of trade and investment. The value of import and export between the two regions has risen from 2.819 billion USD in 2003 to 38.99 billion USD in 2018, accounting for 19% of all Sino-African trade. By 2018, Guangdong had set up about 300 enterprises in Africa, with an investment value of over 2.5 billion USD.

As of June 2019, the two regions had established 12 pairs of sister cities, a total of 11 African countries have set up a consulate in Guangzhou, and about 4,000 African students are studying over the province, according to Mr. Ouyang Jiangxuan, Vice-chairman of the Guangdong People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries.

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Ms. Lin Yi, Vice-chairman of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, said that the Association is making every effort to help young Africans to get a job by providing job training and holding both job fairs and forums, such as the ‘U Job · African Students’ Job Fair’.

The Job Fair forms part of the China-Africa Economic and Cultural Week. It is hosted by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, the Chinese-African People’s Friendship Association, the Guangdong People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, and the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Guangdong Committee, and organized by both the Africa Guangdong Business Association and the Guangdong Association for International Education Management.

Author: Monica Liu

Editor: Simon Haywood