Your News story describing offers of research collaboration by China to Africa (Nature 464, 477; 2010) conveys an overall negative impression of what I believe to be a successful initiative.

For example, you raise doubts about the calibre of students from Africa who train as scientists in China. But the stiff competition for places would suggest otherwise. Figures from Kenya's ministry of higher education show that China and Germany are the most popular study destinations. My own research, supported by Hong Kong's Research Grants Council, also indicates that China's universities are highly regarded by Kenyan candidates.

African students are not expected to take language courses while studying science in Chinese, as you imply. China's Scholarship Council allows them to study Mandarin intensively for a whole year before they embark on their science coursework, when they can continue to study it part-time.

Your story does not mention successful programmes such as the popular scientific collaboration scheme between China and South Africa that has been running for more than ten years. There are other long-term examples of collaboration with Ethiopia, Kenya, Egypt and Cameroon.

A comment attributed to me questions how much good the thousands of short-term training courses in China can achieve. But I should point out that the many people I have interviewed after their return from China are positive about their experience on both short-and long-term courses.