Opening ceremony for Chinese language and culture training course held at Confucius Institute affiliated with University of Johannesburg

The Confucius Institute at the University of Johannesburg, South Africa held the opening ceremony for its Chinese language and culture training course on Nov. 6. The individuals participating in the course are mainly from the Department of Science and Technology Innovation and the Department of Health of South Africa, with the overall number of trainees totalling more than 60.

Sarab Sinha, vice president of the University of Johannesburg, said in his speech that the Confucius Institute at the University of Johannesburg, with its scientific and technological characteristics, has made positive contributions to the promotion of scientific and technological cooperation between the two countries. Since 2020, the Confucius Institute has supported the disciplinary project for traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture and moxibustion in the field of supplementary medicine at the University of Johannesburg.

The successful opening of this training course reflects the unremitting efforts of the Confucius Institute and strong support from both of South Africa’s participating departments.

Mmboneni Muofhe, the deputy director general of the Department of Science and Technology Innovation, will also be joining the training course and learning Chinese. He said that learning another country's language can further promote cultural exchanges and cooperation in the context of globalization, with languages also becoming the bridge connecting the people of South Africa and China.

The training course will last six weeks and include 12 lessons. The first lesson focuses on Chinese songs, Chinese dance, Tai Chi martial arts, traditional festival celebrations, and Chinese speeches, in addition to simple daily expressions performed by teachers and students at the Confucius Institute. The students are looking forward to partaking in the full line-up of lessons.