Tianjin Vocational Institute and D. Serikbayev East Kazakhstan Technical University signed a memorandum of understanding on Thursday and announced that they will join hands to set up a Luban Workshop in Kazakhstan under the Belt and Road Initiative.

The MOU said the two parties will make contributions to the founding of the workshop, which aims to train high-level technical professionals, who are in urgent demand for the social and economic development of Kazakhstan and the initiative.

"This year marks the 10th anniversary of the BRI, and brings new opportunities to BRI regions," said Zheng Qingchun, principal of Tianjin Vocational Institute, on Thursday. "Led by Tianjin local governments, our institute is beefing up our efforts to integrate into the initiative and actively promote the inauguration of the new workshop."

He noted that the new workshop will aim to meet Kazakhstan's social and economic demand and its East Kazakhstan regional industrial structure. The two universities will cooperate on training in the equipment manufacturing sector and on educating skilled personnel who are urgently needed.

Zhadyra Konurbayeva, vice-principal of D. Serikbayev East Kazakhstan Technical University, conducted in-depth investigations into technological training and practice centers and a Luban Workshop practice and experience center for four days in Tianjin, along with officials from her country's education ministry and professors from the university. She hailed the workshop, saying it has "played an important role" in vocational education between China and foreign countries.

"The cooperation with the Tianjin Vocational Institute is set to boost the country's quality development of vocational education," she said.

The university, which was founded in 1958, is one of the key universities in Kazakhstan. It is located in Oskemen, capital of the East Kazakhstan region — a center of science, technology, education and culture.

Named for Lu Ban (507-444 BC), who is regarded as the father of carpentry in China, the workshops aim to train technical professionals worldwide.

To date, 26 Luban Workshops have been opened in 21 countries in Asia, Europe and Africa since the first was established by Tianjin educational authorities in Thailand in 2016.

Twenty-one of the 26 workshops were set up by Tianjin in 20 countries, while the remaining five were founded by vocational and technological colleges from Zhejiang, Shaanxi and Sichuan provinces.