Recently, the collaborative establishment of the Sino-foreign cooperative education institution "Hebei University of Economics and Business Sofia Smart Business School" by our university and the University of National and World Economy in Bulgaria has been officially approved by the Ministry of Education. This institution marks the first Sino-foreign cooperative education entity established by our university, filling a gap in collaborative educational institutions between China and Bulgaria. It is also the first finance and economics-focused cooperative education institution set up with a Central and Eastern European country.