Summary

At the recent Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, Chinese president Xi Jinping pledged to offer 50,000 government scholarships for African students to study in China. This is another major increase from the 30,000 offered in 2015 and underlines China’s goal to become a leading international study destination.

Along with these scholarships, Xi also promised to fund seminar and workshop opportunities for a further 50,000 students and exchange opportunities for 2,000 African young people.

Around one in seven international students in China are from Africa, making this the second most popular destination for African students behind France. This is the fastest-growing group of international students in China with numbers increasing by 24 per cent in 2016 to reach over 61,000, almost triple the number seen five years earlier. In comparison the number of African students in the UK fell by almost 10 per cent from 2015-16 to 2016-17, mainly due to a significant decline in students from Nigeria.

Analysis by Kevin Prest, Senior Analyst, British Council International Education Services

China aims to become a global study hub, with over 489,000 overseas HE students (not including students from Hong Kong, Macao or Taiwan) studying in mainland China in 2017. Data for 2018 is likely to show the country beating its 2020 target of 500,000 international students two years in advance. The recent announcement shows that China will not be content to stay at that level but will push to grow its international student numbers even further.

Africa is one of the main targets for Chinese universities’ overseas recruitment for several reasons. At the national level the Chinese government is working to build stronger economic links with the continent, and education is seen as playing an important role in this. Meanwhile, most African countries are less economically developed which means that Chinese universities’ lower fees and generous scholarships compare more favourably with English-speaking countries such as the UK. Along with the gradually improving quality of Chinese universities, this means that China is becoming a more important competitor to the UK in these markets.

Another recent announcement which will make China more attractive to students from developing countries is the introduction of opportunities for international students to legally work part-time as part of their course. This was previously only officially allowed in some pilot zones with approval from both universities and the relevant entry-exit administration. The reform was announced in August 2018 although no official details or timeline have yet been given.

Sources

1. Xi says China to implement eight major initiatives with African countries (Xinhua) – http://en.people.cn/n3/2018/0903/c90000-9496964.html

2. China will give international students work options (China Daily) – http://usa.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201808/07/WS5b68e48fa3100d951b8c8ed2.html

3. International students in China show continued double-digit growth in 2017 (British Council IES) – https://education-services.britishcouncil.org/news/market-news/international-students-china-show-continued-double-digit-growth-2017