BEIJING, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- Members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) are expanding cooperation in basic education via a new center in Beijing, with AI set to play a role alongside youth exchanges and teacher training.
The countries are expected to use the China-SCO Basic Education Cooperation Center, which was unveiled on Thursday, as a platform to share experience in developing basic education.
China is ready to use digitally enabled and AI-powered education to deepen practical cooperation with SCO members in education, science and technology, and talent, education authorities said.
The center is based in Beijing's Chaoyang District. Education authorities from SCO member states and basic education institutions from across China will be invited to take part in its development.
According to a report on the Global Digital Education Development Index, a composite index developed by the China National Academy of Educational Sciences, China's ranking rose to sixth in 2025 from 24th in 2023.
The country's national smart education platform has amassed more than 130,000 quality resources from primary and secondary schools, 12,500 vocational education courses and 145,000 higher education courses.
The platform boasts more than 178 million users, reaching more than 200 countries and regions, according to the Ministry of Education.
AI has been integrated into admissions and examinations, teaching assessment, employment services and campus governance in China, said Yang Zongkai, director of the ministry's advisory panel on digital transformation of education.
Founded in Shanghai in June 2001, the SCO has expanded from six founding members into the world's largest comprehensive regional organization by geographic coverage and population, with cooperation spanning more than 50 areas. ■
