Learning Chinese gains momentum in Bangladesh with "Chinese Bridge" contest

Yao Wen, Chinese ambassador to Bangladesh, presents an award to a contestant during the 23rd Chinese Bridge - Chinese proficiency competition for foreign college students in Dhaka, Bangladesh on May 31, 2024. (Xinhua/Sun Nan)

DHAKA, June 1 (Xinhua) -- Talk shows in Chinese, lion dances and classical Chinese dances have been staged, with nine contestants from three Confucius Institutes (Classroom) in Bangladesh vying for the crown in the 23rd "Chinese Bridge" competition.

At the event, the college students delivered speeches in Chinese and showed their talents in appreciation and love for Chinese language and culture.

Bushra Mubassera Mahmud from the Confucius Institute at North South University won the prize and will represent Bangladesh to participate in the final in China.

"I'm very happy and excited, but also nervous because I'm going to China for the final. I will continue to work hard to win a better place for Bangladesh," Bushra told Xinhua after the competition.

Talking about Chinese language, Bushra said "I'm not just learning Chinese, I also want to explore as much as I can about Chinese."

"In terms of career planning, I want to be a Chinese language teacher, and I want to share what I have seen and experienced with my future students," she added.

Once a contestant in "Chinese Bridge" competition in 2008, Jannatun Naher, now assistant professor of the Department of Chinese in the Institute of Modern Languages at the University of Dhaka, told Xinhua that she felt very happy and proud when seeing her students participate in the competition.

"I am very happy to see the students expressing their interest in Chinese culture in fluent Chinese," Jannatun said, adding "In the future, I hope more Bangladeshi students will learn Chinese and become a bridge for exchanges between China and Bangladesh in various fields."

Shah E Alam, vice-chancellor of Shanto-Mariam University of Creative Technology, said in his welcome speech that over the years, a number of talented Chinese learners have emerged from the competition in Bangladesh. Most of them are now active in various aspects of Bangladesh-China exchanges and have become a bridge for Bangladesh-China exchanges.

"It is hoped that the 'Chinese Bridge' (competition) will continue to be a bridge of friendship, communication and cooperation between Bangladesh and China, and that more young Bangladeshi students who are interested in China and willing to learn more about China will join the teams of learning Chinese," said Alam.

For his part, Yao Wen, Chinese ambassador to Bangladesh, said that the "Chinese Bridge" competition is not only a language skills competition, but also a platform for cultural exchanges between China and Bangladesh.

Yao encouraged Bangladeshi students to learn Chinese well, learn more about China, strive to be envoys of China-Bangladesh friendship and contribute to the development of China-Bangladesh relations.