Qin Haibo: How can China's railway technology connect with ASEAN?
2026-07-10
China's railway technology is constantly shaping the traffic map of Southeast Asia, from Indonesia's Yawan high-speed railway, to the China Laos railway, to Malaysia's East Coast railway (hereinafter referred to as "Malaysia East Railway"). However, the cooperation between the two sides is not only an extension of the railway track, but also a comprehensive docking of technical standards, talent cultivation, and cultural awareness.
How can China's high-speed rail technology 'ride' towards ASEAN? How can railways build a "heart bridge" between China and ASEAN, promoting further cooperation between the two sides? Recently, Tan Haibo, the head of the chairman unit of the China Malaysia Vocational Education Industry Education Alliance and the president of Liuzhou Railway Vocational and Technical College (hereinafter referred to as "Liuzhou Railway Vocational College"), was interviewed and provided answers.
The summary of the interview transcript is as follows:
Reporter: From cultivating international students to fully participating in the Malaysia East Rail cooperation, what have been the changes in the "high-speed rail going global" in the past decade?
Qin Haibo: As one of the closest Chinese railway vocational colleges to ASEAN countries, in 2016, Liutie Vocational College began to cooperate with Northeastern Royal Institute of Technology in Thailand, and subsequently established the "Thailand China Rail Transit College" in Thailand to cultivate talents for the construction of the China Thailand railway. When we arrived at the China Laos railway project, we trained technical talents for this railway that fully adopts Chinese standards, and continued to recruit Laos students.
Nowadays, cooperation between China and ASEAN is constantly upgrading. China has not only cultivated international students, but also carried out in-depth cooperation in the early stages of railway operation and maintenance plan design, staff configuration planning, and training program formulation.
For example, Liutie Vocational College collaborates with the construction party of the Ma Dong Railway project. The enterprise is responsible for hardware construction, ensuring the railway is open to traffic, and proposing local talent needs in the location; Schools leverage the advantage of "education" to cultivate railway talents for the Ma Dong Railway.
The "high-speed rail going global" in the past decade has been an advanced path from "going global with enterprises" to "working together with schools and enterprises", and then to deeply participating in standard setting.
Reporter: China's high-speed rail technology needs to "accelerate" into ASEAN, facing different technical standards from various countries. How to achieve a leap from "hard connectivity" in high-speed rail construction to "soft connectivity" in talent cooperation and training?
Qin Haibo: The core challenge is not the technology itself, but the adaptation and integration of standards and talents.
The railway infrastructure of ASEAN countries is complex, with different standards such as meter gauge and standard gauge, while China mainly uses standard gauge. How to achieve a 'soft landing' of Chinese technology and standards locally requires joint research and development of practical standards by both parties.
For different countries, cooperation needs to be refined into "tailored to local conditions" and "standard joint research". If the China Laos Railway completely adopts Chinese standards, it will use Chinese standards to train talents; However, Malaysia has put forward many localization requirements, with local train stations being exquisitely designed and compact, with different passenger flow and job positions. Therefore, both parties will cooperate from the development of standards to jointly develop talent training programs.
To cooperate with ASEAN countries, it is necessary to provide customized services based on their actual situations, in order to achieve the transformation of Chinese standards from "adaptation to local conditions" to "adaptation to local conditions" and achieve true "soft connectivity".
Reporter: How do you see railways becoming the "heart bridge" between China and ASEAN? What is the role of establishing the China Malaysia Vocational Education Industry Education Alliance in 2025?
Qin Haibo: I think the railway cooperation between China and ASEAN is a process from "hard connectivity" to "soft connectivity", and then to "heart connectivity".
Through the teaching model of "Chinese+vocational skills", railways have become an excellent platform for cultural exchange. When ASEAN students come to China, they not only learn Chinese and technology, but also experience the excellent traditional Chinese culture, such as making Zongzi, writing brush characters, and celebrating traditional festivals, so as to truly experience China's daily life and build deep feelings in this process.
A vivid example is the training of locomotive assistant drivers for the Ma Dong Railway project. In 2024, the first batch of graduates hope that the company will send them to China for further studies. Among the second batch of students this year, 20 are the first batch of students to "return to the furnace for further study", and they have left a good impression of China. This emotional identification is the most solid bridge pier of the 'Heart to Heart Bridge'.
The China Malaysia Vocational Education Industry Education Alliance will be established in 2025. This alliance currently gathers more than 30 members, including enterprises, universities, research institutions from China and Malaysia; The scope of cooperation has also expanded from a single railway to industries such as urban rail transit, new energy vehicles, intelligent manufacturing, and artificial intelligence. At this point, both parties have turned individual project cooperation into a long-term stable cooperation mechanism, achieving resource sharing and information exchange through the platform, making the cooperation sustainable.
Reporter: Compared to the classic Western vocational education model, what do you think are the unique features of China's vocational education going global model? How can China and ASEAN establish long-term and stable vocational education cooperation?
Qin Haibo: The German dual system and the British apprenticeship system have their own advantages. China has formed a vocational education model with Chinese characteristics through learning, referencing and practicing.
I believe that "government coordination, industry education collaboration, standard building, talent cultivation, and universal sharing" are the core advantages of China's vocational education "going global". For example, Guangxi Railway Craftsmen College keeps up with the pace of industry and enterprises to "go global" and serve the talent needs of overseas Chinese funded projects; In cooperation, it is not about exporting Chinese standards and talents, but about both parties jointly researching and developing professional standards and technical specifications that are in line with local conditions, jointly cultivating local talents, and reflecting the concept of "consultation, co construction, and sharing".
The key to establishing long-term stable cooperation between China and ASEAN is to achieve 'long-term win-win' outcomes. Taking the cooperation of the Ma Dong Railway project as an example, the win-win situation is reflected in multiple aspects: during the construction period, both parties carry out joint research on technical standards; During the operation period, both parties will carry out joint talent cultivation and training. For Malaysia, this railway will change local transportation and economic development, benefiting the people along the way.
Reporter: As a gateway to ASEAN, how can Guangxi leverage its own advantages to promote vocational education cooperation with ASEAN? In which areas is there still room for cooperation in the future?
Qin Haibo: Guangxi is connected to ASEAN countries by mountains and seas, with unique geographical advantages. It is also closer to ASEAN countries in terms of living customs and cultural cognition. The permanent settlement of the China ASEAN Expo in Nanning is an excellent platform for cooperation.
At present, the "Three Five Projects" proposed by the China Malaysia Vocational Education Industry Education Alliance - targeting the five ASEAN countries, five major industrial fields, and five cooperation dimensions - are based on Guangxi's industrial advantages.
Firstly, there is cooperation in the fields of railway and urban rail transit. With the construction of the Pan Asian Railway network and the development of urban rail transit, the demand for relevant talents will continue to grow.
Secondly, there is enormous potential for cooperation in the field of new energy vehicles. China's new energy vehicle technology is leading, and ASEAN countries are also optimistic about this cooperation prospect. Thai schools have already come to study. In addition, with the transfer and upgrading of industries, the demand for talents in the field of intelligent manufacturing in ASEAN countries is becoming increasingly urgent.
The field of artificial intelligence is the future direction. Guangxi is vigorously building cooperation in various fields of "artificial intelligence+". As a vocational college, it can provide artificial intelligence related talents for ASEAN countries in terms of talent cultivation and application. (Outlook New Era)
Interviewee Profile:
Qin Haibo, President of Liuzhou Railway Vocational and Technical College, Chairman of the National Railway Communication and Signal Professional Committee, Member of the National Industrial and Information Vocational Education Teaching Guidance Committee, Director of the China Malaysia Vocational Education Industry Education Alliance, and Director of the Joint Management Committee of China Malaysia Railway Modern Craftsmen College. As the main contributor, participated in the research on the international education project "Proposal Preparation for the Ma Dong Railway Project".
Edit：Luoyu Responsible editor：Zhoushu
Source：chinanews.com
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