HELSINKI, Aug. 7 -- Finnish cities and education providers are concerned with the declining interest of Chinese students to choose Finland as a location for studies.
While the share of Asians of all foreign students in Finland has risen by 30 percent since 2011, the portion of Chinese has dropped by 24 percent, official statistics indicate.
Foreign students are now increasingly considered also as a pool for potential immigrants to Finland. The new center-left government under Prime Minister Antti Rinne has pledged to extend the time a non EU/EEA graduate would be allowed to remain in Finland, looking for work, from one year to two years. Studies in Finland would, however, still give no guarantee of the ultimate right to remain.
Ritva Viljanen, the mayor of Vantaa, next to Helsinki, told Xinhua that she thinks Finland should advertise more the Finnish family services and the whole welfare-state system as an incentive to give Finland a try.
Vantaa is particularly experienced in dealing with people of foreign background and boasts the largest share of foreigners, now 19 percent. But Viljanen was openly disappointed with the small share of Chinese among foreign students in Vantaa, and the whole Helsinki area.
Mayors of cities with friendship ties with China met in July for a televised debate and ways of attracting students emerged as the leading theme.
The concern expressed by cities must be seen against the backdrop of declined birthrates and the statistical need for immigrants. The Finnish municipal autonomy system requires the towns to collect taxes to finance their services, and an immigrant population of professionals could add to the tax revenue pool.
【国际英语资讯:Feature: Decline of Chinese students interest in Finland baffles Finnish decision makers】相关文章:
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