Maharriet, a former trainee from the Ethiopian Luban Workshop, has successfully become a teacher there. She becomes a witness of the successful cooperation between China and Ethiopia on the development of vocational education.

Maharriet gives her students a class on electrical automation control technologies in the Ethiopian Luban Workshop. [Provided by the Ethiopian Luban Workshop]

The workshop facility was jointly launched by Tianjin University of Technology and Education (TUTE) and Ethiopian Technical University (ETU) in  Ethiopia Vocational and Technical Training Institute (EVTTI) in last April.

Maharriet used to receive vocational training in the Ethiopian Luban Workshop. Later, she was invited to be a teacher there because of her outstanding academic performance.

"Advanced technologies and modern equipment there have impressed me a lot. I am keen to impart my knowledge to students and other teachers there. Moreover, I can continue to acquire new knowledge and seek self-improvement," Maharriet said in an interview when talking about the reason for her to accept the offer.

Maharriet (L1) receives a diploma from the head of the Ethiopian Luban Workshop in recognition of her completion of a training session on June 18, 2022. [Provided by the Ethiopian Luban Workshop]

She was a chief instructor in the course of programmable logic controller (PLC) for 15 teachers from several vocational institutes in Ethiopia during their attendance of a training session not long ago.

Maharriet said that with the help of the Chinese government, the EVTTI has grown into a national-level training institute for vocational and technical education, qualified to provide formal education for bachelor's and master's degrees.

She introduced that a special scholarship has been set up by the EVTTI in collaboration with TUTE to further promote the development of local vocational education. The opening of the workshop facility has created more opportunities for Ethiopian people to acquire knowledge and better meet the demands of the local market for skilled labor force in textile, food processing and other high-tech sectors.

When talking about the future of the Ethiopian Luban Workshop, Maharriet hoped that it can further expand its scale and become an independent training center for more Chinese technical experts and teachers to open their vocational training programs in her country.