For Li Jingzhu, a staff member of a road traffic research institute under the Ministry of Communications (MOC), her participation in the InWEnt programme really boosted her career.

InWEnt, Capacity Building International, is a world leading international education institution in Germany and has established strong presence in China.

Li has since been promoted to advise businesses and the government on logistics strategies by the institute.

Spreading the knowledge gained in Germany through her advisory service and via lectures, she said: "My acquired expertise was extremely helpful to my employer, because it enabled me to implement logistics concepts in Chinese companies."

This year, InWEnt and the MOC will celebrate 25 years of close co-operation.

For the past 25 years, one of InWEnt's predecessor organizations, the Carl Duisberg Gesellschaft (CDG), has offered helpful knowledge on sustainable solutions for MOC's trainees in the fields of transport, storage and the turnover of merchandise, with an emphasis on the regional integration of Central and West China.

Another of InWEnt's predecessors was the German Foundation for International Development (DSE), which has also established a strong foothold in China.

In 2002, InWEnt was established through the merger of CDG and DSE.

Niels Albers, director of the InWEnt Co-ordination Centre in Beijing, said InWEnt views China as its most important co-operator, thanks to its fast development.

"We will push our co-operation to new heights," he said.

Apart from MOC, InWEnt has teamed up with many government departments in China such as the ministries of education and commerce, as well as China's central bank the People's Bank of China (PBOC).

He separated InWEnt's training into three major features.

It is skill- and practice-oriented. People have opportunities to work on internships in related companies or government departments.

Like the PBOC and MOC programmes, people need to master good German language skills and work for central levels of the PBOC.

"Also, InWEnt doesn't come here with a ready-made programme, but tailor-made ones," he noted.

Many of InWEnt's programmes focus on assisting China to achieve sustainable development.

For example, the training on the Administrative Law for judges in China is tailored towards China's drive to build a harmonious society, he said.

The training in co-operation with the China Mayor Association aims at helping mayor-level officials achieve more knowledge and helpful methods to enhance bio-diversity management and environmental protection, echoing the nation's call to achieve "greener" economic development.

Albers said some 10 trainees from the State Forestry Administration and some environmental NGOs, who are the first group to be put through a new environmental protection training programme, will arrive in Germany early next month.

"The new programme indicates InWEnt's training for Chinese people is constantly innovative and tailored-made," said a graduate of InWEnt.

InWEnt has organized a club for its alumni in China to help enhance their co-operation after completing their training.

Different training modes are another feature that explains why InWEnt has such a strong presence among many active training institutions in China.

It offers long- and short-term training, ranging from one week to one year courses.

The courses take place in China and Germany. Online HIV/AIDS training is currently ongoing in China.

It surpasses other training programmes, as its capacity building not only focuses on individuals but on institutions.

Each year, an average of 1,200 skilled Chinese executive staff participate in InWEnt programmes.

Currently, 20 programmes in the fields of good governance and economic reforms, sustainable economic development and transport, as well as environmental policies and HIV/AIDS, are earmarked for participants in China.

Among the programmes, the biggest one associated with the Chinese partners is the Ministry of Education.

A total of 1,400 Chinese teachers have participated in training.

Every year, some 55,000 people around the world take part in the InWEnt's training.

(China Daily 09/13/2006 page19)