Generation Z students from Namibia visit the China Science and Technology Museum in Beijing on September 23, 2025. Photo: Courtesy of CNNC
Editor’s Note:
Having enjoyed a long history, friendly exchanges between China and Africa have been deepened in recent years, covering various fields such as politics, economy, and culture. The Global Times is launching a China-Africa Rhapsody series, aiming to showcase the profound human connections and development visions between the two peoples by sharing the true stories of Chinese people in Africa and African people in China. From touching stories of China-Africa cooperation and exciting collisions of youthful ideas to debunking fallacies concocted by some Western sources about China-Africa collaboration, this series hopes to promote closer cooperation and deeper understanding between the peoples of China and Africa.
This installment shares the story of a dozen of Generation Z students from Namibia who visited nuclear energy bases and other cutting-edge technology hubs in China to experience China’s modernization drive and its practices and commitments to green energy.
As a flight spanning 6 time zones landed steadily at the Beijing Capital International Airport on September 21, 12 curious pairs of eyes from Namibia peered through the small windows on board - a 10-day Chinese-Namibian friendship journey covering 15,000 kilometers had finally kicked off.
In 2025, to mark the 35th anniversary of diplomatic ties between China and Namibia, the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) organized the "Nuclear Energy Lights Up Dreams 翨7 Friendship Bridges the Future" exchange and study program. This initiative selected 12 exceptional Namibian Generation Z students from across the nation to visit the company’s nuclear geology research institute, uranium mines, and nuclear power plants.
Through these immersive experiences, they witnessed China’s remarkable technological achievements, cutting-edge innovations, and deep commitment to environmental stewardship - sparking a profound appreciation for the wonders of Chinese nuclear science.
On March 21, 1990, as Namibia’s independence bells rang out, China was among the first countries to establish diplomatic relations with the country. This laid the foundation of mutual respect and equal benefit for 35 years of friendship, serving as a pivotal footnote in the "China-Africa community of shared future."
From early post-independence infrastructure aid to today’s win-win partnerships, uranium resource development, and industrial collaboration have remained the unbreakable bond in bilateral ties.
The Rossing Uranium Mine in Namibia - the world’s longest-operating large-scale open-pit uranium mine - was revitalized after CNNC acquired a 68.62 percent controlling stake in 2019. With 84 percent local procurement boosting community lifelines, over 1,000 skilled workers nurturing local futures, and aid-built hospitals and schools infusing "Chinese warmth" into African soil, the mine thrives anew, the Global Times learned from the company.
The arrival of these 12 Namibian students echoes the "Beijing Declaration" launched at the 2024 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), where both sides pledged enhanced cooperation in technology transfer, education, and training to build capacities together.
A voyage into scientific discovery
"When the day the Rossing Uranium Mine’s flag turned into the blue banner of the CNNC, my dad said Chinese friends brought us hope," said 13-year-old Benjamin at the pre-departure launch ceremony in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, on September 20, carrying his father’s pride.
Though these teens didn’t witness CNNC’s 2019 acquisition of Rossing firsthand, it lives on in their hearts through donated oxygen machines for hospitals, fenced rooftops for schools, and police stations built for the city - seeds of curiosity planted deep.
"This is the Rossing hydrometallurgy viewpoint... this is the Z20 drilling site... this is the photovoltaic station..." During the 20-plus-hour flight, Daylight Sophia Ekandjo, head of Public Relations at Rossing Uranium Mine, recounted to the Global Times that she pulled out her phone to show photos to the huddled youngsters. From Namibia’s open-pit fields to China’s nuclear bases, such technological leaps make natural uranium an invisible thread weaving bilateral friendship.
"These 12 students hail from Windhoek’s urban schools, remote tribal villages, or Swakopmund’s seaside - diverse origins, yet all share a thirst for knowledge and wanderlust," Ekandjo told the Global Times.
At CNNC’s Beijing Research Institute of Uranium Geology (BRIUG), the teens were captivated by the "legendary" foundational stone of China’s nuclear industry: Apreserved ore sample from the nation’s first uranium discovery in the 1950s, marking the dawn of domestic nuclear exploration. Under staff guidance, they delved into China’s uranium geology history, distribution patterns, and key expertise; their eyes alight with aspiration for cutting-edge science.
The Global Times learned from the CNNC that in the analysis and testing center, precision instruments drew gasps of awe. Scientists explained nuclear principles in English, demonstrated experiments, explained every question. One student whispered, "Science is so cool - I want to be a scientist someday!"
At the China Science and Technology Museum’s nuclear exhibit, 14-year-old Jeremia tiptoed to touch a reactor model, nodding along to the English narration. Fifteen-year-old Elrechia raised her hand: "Can Rossing’s uranium ore really turn into electricity?" In her diary later: "Nuclear energy felt distant before; now it’s close, like Chinese friends - far away yet near."
Nearby, in the interactive zone, 15-year-old Berlize teamed up with a Chinese peer to assemble a "mini nuclear plant." Countless seeds of curiosity took root in these Namibian youths, awaiting the journey’s revelations.
Aged 12 to 15, these young envoys are Namibia’s "seeds" for a nuclear future - their successes will inspire thousands to believe "anything is possible," Ekandjo said at the opening ceremony. Far beyond a trip abroad, this program sows curiosity, ambition, and global vision in our youth. For Namibia, it’s a golden chance: Nurturing passion for science, tech, and innovation to ensure nuclear endeavors pass down generations, she noted at the opening ceremony.
Discovering vibrant China
The Global Times also learned from the CNNC that in Xiamen, the teenagers ferried to Gulangyu Island, their baskets brimming with panda plushies, postcards, and pineapple cake magnets. "I’ll share these with classmates - they love Chinese culture," one said.
Across vast landscapes and diverse peoples, the Namibians savored China’s splendor.
Asked by the media if China matched 14-year-old Izen’s expectations, he replied: "Just as good as I imagined. My parents always said it’s friendly, beautiful, and thriving."
Dawn at Beijing Chaoyang railway station on September 24, the G3651 high-speed train glided out. Twelve pairs of eyes glued to windows as hutongs gave way to plains. "350 km/h! Insane!" 16-year-old Ondjazemua timed it on his phone - 4 hours 9 minutes to Tongliao, Inner Mongolia’s grasslands from Beijing’s grandeur. In his diary, he put it as "China’s speed isn’t luck - it’s from countless people’s persistence and wisdom, building a global tech, and industrial powerhouse."
At the green mine of China National Uranium Corporation Tongliao Uranium Industry Corporation, eco-friendly and smart mining fused for conservation wins and economic gains. Students marveled at the info-control center run from one screen, flower-dotted grounds, and fields cradled by blue skies.
In discussions, Rossing Foundation CEO Chris Movirongo reflected: "CNNC keeps Rossing safe, efficient, and sustainable.
One Chinese team leader recalled to the Global Times that a fifteen-year-old Etuhole sighed: "I want to learn this tech and bring it home." This cross-border resonance echoes CNNC’s warm philanthropy in Namibia: from Tuberculosis screening gear donations, to training 1,000 youths, to water wells solving 5,000 people’s access woes - friendship sprouts in daily lifelines.
The Global Times learned from the CNNC that on September 26, the group toured the world’s largest Hualong One nuclear power base in Zhangzhou, East China’s Fujian Province.
Fourteen-year-old Dean Jossoph noted: "The instructor told us that one unit generates over 10 billion kilowatt-hours yearly, powering a mid-sized developed nation’s million residents. Six units? That’s mind-blowing."
"Is this ’zero-carbon power’?" 14-year-old Nambago asked. The engineer nodded: "One Hualong One unit cuts 8.16 million tons of CO2 emissions annually."
Over lunch, 14-year-old Maria Kanyanga asked a 1990s-born engineer Xu Jiawei: "Is nuclear plant work tough?" He replied: "Tough but fulfilling. Challenges come, but seeing Hualong One run safely, lighting homes, makes it worthwhile."
The Hualong One nuclear power in Zhangzhou, East China’s Fujian Province Photo: Courtesy of CNNC
Fostering hearts, forging futures
At the 2024 Beijing Summit of the FOCAC, China and Africa designated 2026 as the "China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges."
To implement leaders’ consensus and summit outcomes, both sides will host themed events in 2026, marking 70 years of diplomatic ties. These will promote civilization exchanges, connect hearts, blend emotions, unite strengths, and nurture public support; leverage exchanges to embody genuine friendship toward Africa, unlock cooperation potentials, infuse vitality into joint modernization, and contribute to a new-era all-weather China-Africa community of shared future, according to the China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Enterprises such as CNNC have boosted China’s nuclear tech and cultural influence in Africa via China-Africa youth exchanges, advancing FOCAC’s goals. Supported by recent Chinese enterprises’ efforts - for instance, perennial rice trials in Burundi’s Karuzi and upgraded telecoms in Madagascar’s remote areas - this initiative embodies talent cultivation for development, innovation and livelihood improvement.
At Namibia’s Rossing Uranium Mine, Chinese enterprise flags fly, symbolizing inheritable technology and enduring friendship.
For Namibian youngsters, they may not yet grasp "a community with a shared future for humanity" fully, but these 10 days provided the liveliest answer. Real observations and genuine bonds from the trip will illuminate Chinese-Namibian paths ahead, making ties ever stronger and warmer.
原文地址：http://en.people.cn/n3/2025/1022/c90000-20380149.html