By Xinhua
Beijing : Cisco will expand its investment in China to $16 billion during the next five years, according to a post on Cisco’s website Thursday.
The multi-year investment includes material procurements, venture capital, vocational education and other areas.
Cisco signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Alibaba Group, China’s biggest online business-to-business company, Thursday that would provide “IT solutions to small and medium enterprises at affordable prices”.
It also signed a MoU with China Development Bank Thursday and the two investors agreed to support Chinese companies mainly in IT, communications and health care sectors.
Cisco’s investment in China during the past five years has totalled $8.5 billion, the website said.
The firm would also cooperate with China’s education ministry to provide long-distance vocational education for those in central and western areas.
The plan is to train another 100,000 students by 2010, adding to the current 90,000 students.