Confucius Institute in Tanzania celebrates 10th anniversary

DAR ES SALAAM, July 1 (Xinhua) -- The Confucius Institute at the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania on Saturday celebrated its 10th anniversary.

Government officials, Chinese diplomats in Tanzania, representatives from Confucius institutes and Chinese companies in the country attended a ceremony held in Dar es Salaam, the largest city in the East African country. They also took part in a symposium on Chinese education in Africa.

Kenneth Hosea, director of the Department of Higher Education in the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, commended the Confucius Institute at the University of Dar es Salaam for the accomplishments it has made in promoting mutual understanding of friendly cooperation between China and Tanzania.

Speaking on behalf of the minister, Hosea said the institute has been instrumental in offering cultural exchanges and Chinese language learning as an effective approach to the further development of China-Tanzania ties.

"The directors of the Confucius Institutes are working hard to ensure that Tanzanian youth learn the Chinese language so as to improve their competitiveness in both future career development and self-development," Hosea said.

Bernadeta Killian, acting vice chancellor of the University of Dar es Salaam, said the university was resuming offering Bachelor of Arts with Education (Chinese and English) to students who will later teach the Chinese language in primary and secondary schools in Tanzania.

Chen Mingjian, the Chinese ambassador to Tanzania, said so far the Confucius Institute has trained nearly 50,000 Chinese learners in Tanzania, providing opportunities for students who want to learn Chinese.

Chen said the Confucius Institute at the University of Dar es Salaam has also helped nearly 100 students to apply for scholarship, providing them with the opportunity to study in China.

During its 10 years in Tanzania, the institute has organized a total of 244 students to participate in Chinese summer camps for college and secondary school students, she said.

The Confucius Institute at the University of Dar es Salaam was established in 2013 under an agreement between the University of Dar es Salaam, the Chinese International Education Foundation and Zhejiang Normal University.

The vision of the Confucius Institute is to be one of the leading Chinese language training and testing centers, as well as one of the best Chinese cultural and academic exchange centers in Africa.