A Meeting on the Silk Road with President Sergio Mattarella
THE BOCCONI STUDENTS WHO ARE ATTENDING THE CHINA MIM IN SHANGHAI MET ITALY'S PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLICPresident Sergio Mattarella's state visit to China made a stop in Shanghai today with his lectio magistralis ‘New Silk Roads’ at Fudan University. On the occasion, the President also met with a group of Bocconi students who are in Shanghai this year as part of the study program for the China Master in International Management (China MIM), run in collaboration by Bocconi and Fudan.
The birth of the China MIM in 2006 was promoted by the Italian and the Chinese Ministries of Education to strengthen ties between the two countries and to train graduates with exposure to both economies and cultures. The program foresees that a single class group of Italian and Chinese students attend one year at Bocconi and one in Fudan. Over the years, more than 500 students have completed the route between Milan and Shanghai.
During his lectio, President Mattarella spoke about the need for "'Silk Roads' to multiply and deepen," that Italy and China "build a stable base of dialogue, that can continuously strengthen and grow" and that "our countries' public and private institutions – and in first place academic ones – pay great attention to, with a renewed passion, the deepening of our cultural relations." And in this context "Fudan University has fully understood these needs and has consequently embarked on this path with conviction, actively collaborating with some of the most important Italian universities," said Mattarella, citing Bocconi.
Accompanied by prof. Fabrizio Perretti, Director of China MIM for Bocconi, students attended the lectio and also had the opportunity to ask the President some questions.
"Students who are here with us today live and study in the modernity of one of the most active cities in the world and are naturally projected towards the future, like their Chinese counterparts studying in Bologna, Rome or Milan," said Mattarella.
by Tomaso Eridani
