CICG expert receives 2023 Chinese Government Friendship Award

Evandro Menezes de Carvalho, a Brazilian expert at China International Communications Group (CICG), was awarded the 2023 Chinese Government Friendship Award, the highest award to commend foreign experts who have made outstanding contributions to China's modernization drive. 

The award ceremony took place on Sunday at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, honoring 50 foreign experts from 26 countries for their exceptional contributions to China's reform and development.

Evandro Menezes de Carvalho is a winner of the 2023 Chinese Government Friendship Award. [Photo/CICG]

Carvalho, along with the other honored foreign experts, also met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang at the Great Hall of the People, where they discussed China's development and international cooperation. 

Carvalho, a distinguished China scholar, is the chief executive editor of the Portuguese edition of China Today magazine, a CICG publication. The magazine is a key resource for Brazilian readers seeking to understand China.

Carvalho is also the director of the Center for Brazil-China Studies at the Getulio Vargas Foundation School of Law  and the director of the Center for BRICS Countries Studies at Fluminense Federal University. His work spans academic research and media communication, focusing on topics such as the Belt and Road Initiative and BRICS cooperation. 

His efforts to foster bilateral friendship and understanding have earned recognition from both Chinese and Brazilian authorities and institutions. In January last year, the Brazilian Congress honored him with the Brazil-China Fraternal Integration Cross of Merit. 

Evandro Menezes de Carvalho and his wife pose for a photo after he received the 2023 Chinese Government Friendship Award in Beijing, Feb. 4, 2024. [Photo/CICG]

The Friendship Award, which officially began in 1991, has honored nearly 1,900 foreigners from over 80 countries and regions. So far, 15 foreign experts working at CICG have received this honor.