Established in 1979, Tianjin University of Technology and Education is among the earliest Higher Education Institutes in China established for training technical and vocational school teachers. It is also one of China’s earliest overseas educational assistance bases. In May 2012, with the purpose to deepen the educational cooperation with African countries and to enhance its capability to serve the development of China-Africa friendly relations, TUTE established the Center of African Union Studies through integrating multiple resources from the School of Vocational Education, the School of Finance and Economics, and the International Exchange Office of the university. The mandate of the center is to carry out multidisciplinary studies concerning the African continent with particular research focus on the African Union and Ethiopian studies.

The center has five fulltime researchers: one professor, one associate research fellow and three assistant research fellows. In May 2013, the center employed Dr. Gebre, Dean of the School of Social Science of Addis Ababa University, and Dr. Tesfaye, Chairperson of the Center of African Studies of Addis Ababa University, as Honorable Professors. In 2015, H.E. Xie Xiaoyan, former Chinese Ambassador to Ethiopia was employed as the Honorable Director of the center. Apart from the fulltime team, the center has a team of part-time researchers from different schools of the university, most of whom have either working or research experience in African countries. Ever since its establishment in 2012, the center has been guided by an Academic Committee consisting of well-known Chinese and African scholars including Prof. Li Anshan from Peking University, Prof. Shu Yunguo from Shanghai Normal University, Research fellow Li Zhibiao from the Research Institute of West Asia and African of Chinese Academy of Social Science, and so on. The center is unique in its eras of studies among Chinese African studies institutes.