Written by EIT chief executive Lucy Laitinen
Before this year, I hadn’t fully appreciated how important our education partnerships with China are, not just for EIT, but for Hawke’s Bay and New Zealand. Two visits over the past two months have changed that.
In June, I travelled to Shaoxing and Jinan to visit two long-standing partners. At Zhejiang Yuexiu University (ZYU) in Shaoxing, EIT operates a joint institute where students graduate with both an EIT qualification and a ZYU degree in Computing or Creative Practice. At Qilu University of Technology in Jinan, we contribute to wine education within their Bachelor of Brewing programme. I attended graduation ceremonies and signed extensions to partnerships built over many years.
What struck me most was the manaakitanga we received, generous and humbling in equal measure. It also challenged my assumptions: like many New Zealanders, I had imagined Chinese students might be quiet and reserved. Instead, the ceremonies were vibrant and full of energy, and I posed for more selfies over those two days than in the rest of my life combined.
The experience reminded me that, despite the distance between our countries, we share similar aspirations. Whether in Hawke’s Bay or China, educators want the same thing: to help people build better futures through education, students want meaningful careers, and parents want their children to succeed.
In July, I re-visited China with a delegation of New Zealand polytechnic leaders led by Hon Penny Simmonds, Minister for Tertiary Education, Science, Innovation and Technology. We met education partners and recruitment agencies, and visited electric vehicle manufacturer XPeng, keen to partner with our sector to train the technicians of the future.
One highlight was joining Minister Simmonds’ meeting with China’s Minister of Education, Huai Jinpeng, who spoke of his desire to strengthen educational cooperation between our two countries. It prompted an interesting question: why would a country of 1.4 billion people seek partnerships with a small region on the east coast of New Zealand?
The answer, I think, is that our strengths complement each other. China is placing growing emphasis on vocational education, applied learning and graduate employability, which aligns closely with New Zealand’s approach and EIT’s strengths in industry-connected learning. Our expertise in agriculture, food and wine, engineering, computing and creative arts is valued because it is practical and connected to employers.
That should give us confidence. Expertise developed in Hawke’s Bay has genuine international relevance, and the benefits flow directly back to our region. China is one of Hawke’s Bay’s most important export markets, for apples, meat, wine and wood products, and as one of New Zealand’s most export-oriented regions, our prosperity is tied to international relationships.
Education is part of that story. Chinese students studying at our Taradale and Auckland campuses support our local economy, while revenue from our transnational partnerships with Chinese universities helps fund education across Hawke’s Bay and Tairāwhiti.
These are not one-sided arrangements where one side teaches and the other learns. They are genuine partnerships in which both sides contribute, learn and benefit. Educational partnerships aren’t built on agreement about everything; they are built on trust, shared interests and practical collaboration.
When I began this year as Chief Executive of EIT, I saw our international partnerships largely through an institutional lens. Two visits to China have broadened that view. I now see them as part of something bigger: relationships that strengthen our region, deepen understanding between countries, and keep New Zealand connected to a rapidly changing world.
International education is often discussed in terms of student numbers and export revenue. Those things matter, but at its heart, this is a two-way relationship.
We share our knowledge and expertise, and gain new perspectives in return. For Hawke’s Bay, that exchange isn’t simply valuable. It’s an investment in our future.
