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The paper deals with the internationalisation dimensions and achievements of the work of Professor József Tóth as Rector of the University of Pécs (PTE). The author, as a direct colleague of Rector Tóth, uses the mixed method to analyse interviews and documents published in newspapers, and shares a number of personal memories and primary information with the aim of revealing to the reader József Tóth’s visionary thinking on the international positioning of the integrated University of Pécs. The paper is also a tribute to Tóth’s strategic planning, which certainly marked the beginning of institutional internationalisation for PTE.

This article analyses the economic impact of inbound student mobility in Hungary. The research is based on an innovative approach not only showing the geoeconomic impact based on expenditures of the different groups of incoming students (Erasmus+, degree mobility of self-funded or scholarship holder students), but also links the data to specific sectors of the national and local economies. Thus, the paper reveals that international student mobility affects not only the internationalization of the higher education institutions or even the entire higher education sector, but also the wider macro environment, carrying geopolitical considerations. Based on the findings, a new aspect or "side effect" of the global and/or governmental "soft power" initiatives (e.g. Erasmus+, Belt and Road Initiative, Stipendium Hungaricum) can be identified in economic development. With the Hungarian case, the article intends to contribute to a better understanding of the changing geopolitics of higher education in the twenty-first century.

Acknowledging a growing new concern about China across the Global North in general, and in the U.S. in particular, in the context of China--Africa relations, the article examines Ethiopia as a case study to understand the multi-faceted relationship. Based on field research in 2018-20, together with local media reports, it looks at some of the recent large-scale infrastructure projects in Ethiopia built by Chinese companies, in particular the Light Railway in Addis Ababa and the Ethiopia--Djibouti Railway. These will be analyzed in the context of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) of China. Although the expansion of badly needed modern infrastructure, and thus enhanced connectivity, is welcomed by society at large, the following research questions are raised: (1) How difficult will the repayment of loans be for Ethiopia? (2) Is China offering a worse scenario than the Western practice? At the same time, what is the alternative to these Chinese loans for African governments at present? (3) What are the costs and benefits for both sides? In the process of measurable growing indebtedness--this time to China--the article will shed light on some new dependencies in the making., Introduction: Rising Debt Stress in Sub-Saharan Africa Over the last two decades China has become the largest trading partner for the entire African continent. This means that while in 2000 [...]

Following the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union it held between January and June 2011, the Hungarian government introduced a new foreign policy strategy of 'Global Opening.' As part of this strategic concept, Hungary intends to revitalize linkages with countries of sub-Saharan Africa with which it once had intensive relations, in particular during the bipolar era. For the first time since the change of the political system in 1989, Africa-related concepts also have been included in plans fostered by the government that has held office since 2010. As one of the very few scholarly articles addressing the issue of relations between Hungary and Africa, the present paper aims first of all to give an overview of historic ties. Second, it analyzes the current potential for Hungarian involvement in Africa, especially after the Budapest Africa Forum of June 2013, with a fuller insight into Hungarian--South African relations as the most thriving framework of cooperation. Finally, it touches upon issues of a long-term strategic Hungarian policy towards Africa., Introduction Hungary as a central European country without a record of having colonized territory in the Global South but as a member of the European Union with an extended history [...]

Robert I. Rotberg. 2013. Africa Emerges: Consummate Challenges, Abundant Opportunities. Cambridge: Polity Press. 269 pp. Today, the African continent is again full of hope. After the euphoric decade of the [...]

Jack Mangala, ed. 2013. Africa and the European Union: A Strategic Partnership. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. 257 pp. While the European Union has been struggling with numerous internal challenges, such [...]

China is the world’s most populous country and has the largest ageing population worldwide. The Chinese government implemented a family planning policy in 1979, ordering couples from China’s ethnic Han majority to assume only one child. For 36 years the population control policy remained basically untouched. By the time the law was implemented, only five percent of the total population of China was at least 65 years of age. Today, this number has reached nine percent, which is around 123 million people. During that time, the birth rate had dimidiated which became visible in the past two decades and the labor pool started to shrink. In 2015, the working age population of China decreased by a record 4.87 million, much more down from the previous year’s drop of 3.71 million, resulting in total the third-straight annual decline in the labor force, according to the Chinese National Bureau of Statistics (January, 2015). The ageing population of China may be a signal or one of the causes for the slowdown of economic growth because it resulted in a drop in productive labor force meanwhile the increasing average wage level is making China less competitive to other labor intensive countries. As an answer to the low fertility rate and the ageing society, the Chinese government permitted to change the previous regulation to “two child policy” allowing its people to have two children.Balancing between ageing population and economic growth requires fresh and innovative strategies and policies from the administration. Ageing is a new challenge many countries are facing already or will face in the near future. This study aims to show and analyze the current situation, the future possibilities and provides a critical analysis of the strategies of the Chinese government, as well as to focus on the progress and the socio-structural obstacles.