The Ministry of Education has called for educational cooperation along the Belt and Road, and urged the cultivation of urgently needed talents for BRI joint construction.

Professor Hua Yan, Party secretary of Tianjin Medical University and the dean of the School of Medicine of Nankai University, has played an important role in bolstering international medical education and training.

As an eye expert, he has been engaged in clinical and basic research on ocular trauma, vitreoretinal diseases, optic nerve damage and eye immune diseases, and has made remarking achievements, especially in the minimally invasive treatment of complex eye trauma and vitreoretinal diseases by vitrectomy surgery.

He attaches great importance to the education of international students. He has taught ophthalmology for 20 years for international students, as well as improved international courses and teaching methods.

Relying on the English teacher training center of the university, Yan promotes a training system for nationwide teachers featuring international vision and the ability teach in English.

For his teaching efforts, Yan was awarded the Tianjin Municipal Brand Course of Studying in China and was also invited to the University of São Paulo in Brazil to exchange experience in the education and residency training of international students.

In addition, Yan edited and published the English version of "Ophthalmology" as a teaching material for international students. Furthermore, he will give lectures and surgical demonstrations for diagnosis and treatment of eye diseases for ophthalmology residents in nations along the Belt and Road every year, and train international students to obtain master's degrees in medicine.