YICHANG, CHINA — UIN Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta continues to expand its international network through its participation in the prestigious Second Belt and Road International Forum on Vocational Education Conference, held in Yichang City, Hubei Province, China, from September 15–17, 2026.

This annual international forum brought together hundreds of delegates, including senior education officials, embassy representatives, university leaders, and industry practitioners from various Belt and Road partner countries. The UIN Sunan Kalijaga delegation attended as a partner and special invited guest of Wuxi University of Technology.

The UIN Sunan Kalijaga delegation was led directly by Rector Prof. Noorhaidi Hasan, S.Ag., M.A., M.Phil., Ph.D. Also accompanying the Rector were Vice Rector for Student Affairs and Cooperation Prof. Dr. Abdur Rozaki, S.Ag., M.Si., Dean of the Faculty of Islamic Economics and Business Prof. Dr. Misnen Ardiansyah, S.E., M.Si., Ak., CA., ACPA., and Head of the International Office, Dr. Witriani, S.S., M.Hum.

Strategic Focus of the Forum

As a global dialogue platform bringing together education and industry across countries, this second edition of the forum offered comprehensive coverage through several plenary sessions and four main parallel forums, covering:

Cross-Border Regional Cooperation, which examined in depth the strengthening of strategic partnership networks, particularly within the framework of educational cooperation between China–Southeast Asia and China–Africa.

Technological Innovation and Future Skills, highlighting the theme “New Industries, New Technologies, and Skill Reshaping” in response to the needs of modern industrial transformation.

Employment and Human Resource Development, examining strategic issues related to improving graduate employability and developing education models oriented toward "Skilled Talent Employment."

For UIN Sunan Kalijaga, involvement in this global forum provided strategic space to strengthen academic dialogue, adopt best practices in modern higher education governance, and expand the institution's contribution to international research networks and human resource development.

Signing of Cross-Country Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs)

As part of the main program, UIN Sunan Kalijaga Rector, Prof. Noorhaidi Hasan, officially signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) with a number of leading partner universities in China and the Southeast Asian region. This broad collaboration spans various aspects of the Tridharma (Three Pillars of Higher Education), including the development of joint academic programs, improving the quality of human resources, and strengthening cross-country collaborative research.

During the forum, UIN Sunan Kalijaga's leadership were also entrusted with sharing their strategic and academic ideas before the global delegation.

Prof. Noorhaidi M.A., M.Phil., Ph.D. was scheduled to serve as a keynote speaker in two important sessions: the Experience Exchange session, and as a panelist in the session “Digital and Intelligent Empowerment: Promoting Innovation and Quality in Vocational Teaching and Learning.”

Meanwhile, Prof. Dr. Abdur Rozaki served as a panelist in a discussion session themed “Building Cooperation Models, Joint Standard Development, and Risk Prevention in Belt and Road Vocational Education Cooperation.”

The presence and expertise shared by UIN Sunan Kalijaga's leadership affirm the institution's tangible contribution to the global education landscape and the development of standards for cross-country cooperation.

Through this strategic step, UIN Sunan Kalijaga continues its commitment to delivering higher education that is inclusive, adaptive, and globally competitive. (humas/IO)