“Nihao, China!” the Year 4 children cheered enthusiastically as reporters were filming them in their classroom. It was in Cassia Primary School in Port Hedland, Western Australia, a remote town two-hour flight away from the state capital Perth, and yet the largest iron ore export port in Australia. The day was in late October, as summer has begun in the Southern Hemisphere, and Port Hedland, overlooking the Indian Ocean, has reached a sweltering 40 degrees Celsius, but the heat was no match for the children’s enthusiasm. “Hi, my name is Margaret. I really like the pandas and Chinese food,” one student said. “My name is Thania. I love seeing pandas,” said another, “but I’ve never been to China before.” “My name is Dehavellen. I really like Chinese restaurants,” said one more.
A STORY OF A FLAG
As the children were chirping, a Chinese flag was hung prominently on the wall in the front left of their classroom, and books about China were placed on shelves in a corner. There was a story about the flag, Chinese Consul General in Perth Long Dingbin told Xinhua. Back in September, the Chinese consulate general received an email from Jackson, a Year 4 boy at Cassia Primary School, saying he was very interested in China and hoped to learn about the country. It would be great if he could get a Chinese flag, the boy said. “The letter was brief but full of curiosity, trust and goodwill towards China,” Long said. “And it was a Year 4 student who was learning how to send emails.” The consulate general immediately arranged to send a Chinese flag, books about China and other souvenirs to the boy, in addition to an email introducing China’s scenic sites, foods and history stories. When Jackson opened the package from the consulate general, the whole class was so excited as if it were a holiday. “You should have seen the kids’ faces as they just lit up,” said Axel Jenkins, a teacher at the school. “I wrote to China, because I kind of think it’s a cool country, very big,” Jackson said. “And in most photos, it looks pretty cool. I am kind of fascinated of the country.” The parents of about 90 percent of the students in this classroom work in the mines, Jenkins said, adding that it is a good thing for the students to build connections with other countries.”I think it’s really important that students know who the largest trade partners are as well,” he said. “We’re actually pretty close to China. We’re close to the Asian area,” Jenkins said. “So it’s good to give them (the students) a sense of the geography where they are in the world and how they are so connected to other parts of the world as well. And particularly China, of course.”
A STORY OF MUTUAL BENEFIT
Port Hedland exports about 563 million tons of products a year, almost all of which is iron ore, and about 85 percent of the mineral is exported to China, said Samuel McSkimming, chief executive of the Pilbara Ports Authority, which runs Port Hedland. “Port Hedland wouldn’t exist in the way it exists today if it weren’t for China. Port Hedland and China are deeply, deeply linked,” McSkimming said. “Port Headland has grown from exporting maybe 100 million tons 20 years ago to 560 million tons today. And that is because Port Headland is so closely linked to the phenomenal and amazing growth of China in the last 20 years,” he said. At Australian mining giant Fortescue’s Herb Elliott port facility in Port Hedland, just 20-minute drive from Cassia Primary School, loads of iron ore were being transported by a ship-loading conveyor to a bulk carrier. The iron ore would reach China two weeks after departure, according to Fortescue’s engineers. About 90 percent of the group’s iron ore products are exported to China. The premier of Western Australia, Roger Cook, said the state’s exports to China in 2023 accounted for over 50 percent of Australia’s total exports to China, with iron ore being the most important commodity. “Through that great partnership that we have with China, we’ve been able to significantly boost Western Australia’s economy,” Cook said. “And we are in Western Australia, the engine room of Australia’s economy. So the exports of iron ore to China really underpin the important opportunities we have with economic growth.” Meanwhile, Western Australia has been providing quality iron ore to feed the steel factories of China and boost the country’s development, the premier said.
“So we’d like to think that we’re an important part of the China story, making sure that our minerals really empower the further economic growth of China,” he said.