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The top ten performing trainees of the Confucius Institute of UWI were awarded with Lenovo pads during the Chinese Embassy’s Open Day. Here, they stand with Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China in Barbados, Wang Ke; Education Minister, Ronald Jones; Acting Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, David Bulbulia; Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology at UWI, Jeanese Badenock; Co-Director of the Confucius Institute of the UWI, Cave Hill Campus, Francois Jackman; and Co-Director of the Confucius Institute of the UWI, Cave Hill Campus, Dr. Song Qinbao.

Chinese teaching flourishing in Barbados

 

Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China in Barbados, Wang Ke says Chinese teaching is flourishing locally.
 
She added that currently, five years after classes started, “more than 130 University of the West Indies (UWI) students have enrolled” to learn the language. She further stated that the UWI, Cave Hill Confucius Institute, “since its establishment in 2015, has offered Chinese courses and training to more than 1 400 persons, both on campus and other agencies including the BDF, Central Bank and the diplomatic corps in Barbados”.
 
“Fourteen of the trainees have passed Chinese language proficiency test HSK Level 1 and enrolled for Level 2. Additionally, four local schools have set up Chinese courses with the assistance from the Confucius Institute,” it was revealed.
 
Her comments came while addressing the recent Chinese Embassy Open Day and the Delivery Ceremony of the 2016 Chinese Ambassador’s Awards at the headquarters of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Barbados.
 
During the Awards, four UWI, Cave Hill Campus students were honoured for their excellent GPAs and having excelled in their Chinese classes. The ten top performing trainees of the Confucius Institute of UWI were presented with Lenovo pads. Additionally, three public schools where Chinese classes are taught were presented with gifts.
 
Ambassador Wang Ke encouraged the awarded students “to contribute to the prosperity and development of Barbados, and play an active role in the enhancement of China-Barbados relations and the friendship between our two peoples”.
 
Meanwhile speaking about next year’s 40th anniversary of China-Barbados diplomatic relations, she expressed a “hope that the Chinese class at UWI, Cave Hill, and the Chinese training at Confucius Institute, will make greater achievement. 
 
“I also hope that related ministries, including Ministry of Education and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, will positively consider to list Chinese among the optional foreign language courses for Barbadian students”. (MG)
 

 

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