Twenty universities and institutions from China participated in the 11th Hellenic International Exhibition on Education that opened on Friday.

Chinese universities made their debut in the Greek exhibition and provide direct access to Greek students, said Li Jianmin, head of the Chinese delegation and deputy secretary-general of China Scholarship Council.

He said Chinese universities have started in recent years to conduct teaching in English, especially for courses at the graduate level, thus making things easier for foreign students.

"Compared with other European countries, far fewer students from Greece come to study in China, and this is what we come here for," said Li.

The Chinese government is reportedly considering raising the sum of scholarship for students from Greece.

Under the Sino-Greece education cooperation agreement of 2007-2010, China will provide seven full-year scholarships for Greek students each year and 21 scholarships for language training in summer courses.

Athanasios Kiriazis, special secretary for higher education in Greece, said the Greek ministry of education welcomed the Chinese universities and hope their participation will help build direct links between education communities of the two countries.

The ministry will pass on the information about Chinese higher education to Greek universities and students, said Kiriazis.

Greece also plans to set up a special department on Chinese studies in Greek universities, he added.

The three-day education exhibition drew the participation of more than 250 educational institutions from Greece and 14 other countries,

(Xinhua News Agency March 7, 2009)