Ghanaian students studying in China joined the week-long celebration of the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

They seized the auspicious occasion to present anniversary plaques and citations to the People's Republic of China.

October 1, 2019, marked New China's 70th birthday with tens of thousands of people singing, dancing and cheering, and fireworks illuminating much of downtown Beijing, the heart of the national capital to signal the dawn of a progressive nation.

'Seventy years ago, on this day, Comrade Mao Zedong solemnly declared here to the world that the People's Republic of China (PRC) was founded and the Chinese people had stood up' His Excellency, President Xi Jinping said while addressing a grand rally celebrating the PRC's 70th founding anniversary at the Tian'anmen Square in Beijing.

His speech on the National Day celebration earned wide praise as he pledged that China will stay on the path of peaceful development and pursue mutually beneficial strategy of opening up, and continue to work with people from all countries to jointly build a community with a shared future for humanity.

China has shown humanity how a determined country with the right leadership and right vision can achieve great success in the 21st century. This astonishing progress has never been achieved in the history of humankind by any other nation in such a short duration of time and this is magnificent and worthy of emulation.

In commemoration of China's 70th anniversary, the National Union of Ghana Students in China (NUGS-China) presented anniversary plaques and citations to Chengdu Municipal Government, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu Sports University, Southwest Jiaotong University, Sichuan Agricultural University, and Southwest Petroleum University in the stead of the People's Republic of China.

Presenting the commemorative plaques on behalf of Ghanaian students in China and the national President, Mr. Felix Gyawu Addo, Ing. Franklin Kumassah, President of NUGS, Chengdu Chapter, who doubles as Secretary of the Media and Publicity Committee of NUGS-China, wished the People of China a prosperous future and thanked the Government of China for awarding scholarships to Ghanaian students to pursue further studies in China.

A section of the citation presented to China reads 'China and Ghana boast of great history and diplomatic relations which dates from the era of Dr Kwame Nkrumah, the first President of Ghana and Chairman Mao Zedong of Great China.

China cherishes her traditional friendship with Ghana and has therefore awarded more government scholarships to Ghanaians to study in China than any other African country, and this kind gesture obligates Ghana to deepen our bilateral cooperation, guarantee and jointly safeguard the interests of both countries for a shared future.'

On her part, Miss He Shan, a representative from the Foreign Affairs Office of Chengdu Municipal People's Government, Division of Asian and African Affairs, receiving the plaque and citation on behalf of the People's Republic of China, thanked Ghana for the show of goodwill, solidarity and friendship towards China and prayed that this kind gesture would strengthen the bond between China and Ghana.

As Ghanaian students pursuing further studies in China, we wish to acknowledge the benevolence of the Government of China and our host institutions and extend our appreciation and season's felicitations to His Excellency, President Xi Jinping and the good people of Great China.