ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdish students in Erbil, who have for the past three years enrolled in a university’s Chinese language program in hopes of elevating their language skills and opportunities in the job market, on Tuesday celebrated the international Chinese Language Day on campus.
The Chinese language department of Erbil’s Salahaddin University has been taking in students since 2019, and currently has 13 students who are pursuing a degree in the language.
“The language was very new in the Kurdistan Region. I wanted to join this department as it was a new challenge for me,” Hiwa Saadi, a 21 year old student from Erbil told Rudaw’s Payam Sarbast on Tuesday.
Internationally, Chinese Language Day is celebrated on April 20, students and faculty at Salahaddin University’s Chinese department showcased their projects and works on campus in an early celebration of the day.
“Our speaking level is really good, we have been here a few years, and despite the absence of a Chinese environment here where we can speak the language, our level is really good,” he added.
China’s interests in Iraq, anchored in energy to quench its growing needs, are expanding. Beijing is building power plants, factories, water treatment facilities, as well as badly needed schools across the country.
Dozens of contracts signed in recent years ensure China’s growing footprint.
In 2017, the Chinese consulate approached Salahaddin University’s College of Languages with the idea of a Chinese language department. Opening a school in the capital Baghdad came with security risks, but the Kurdistan Region was relatively secure.
“I have been teaching Chinese as a second language for more than 20 years,” Mu Yunfeng, a professor at the department said. “This year, 2022, we are going to have 30 students.”
“I think all people want to communicate and understand each other,” Yunfeng said, adding that language is a bridge to establish good communication.
China opened its consulate in Erbil in 2014 and has shared close ties with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).
Chinese Consul-General Ni Ruchi in September told Rudaw that the KRG has plans to open a representation office in China, adding that despite the ongoing numerous projects with Chinese investment in the Kurdistan Region, they are also exploring cooperation projects in the fields of water resources, electricity, and oil refinement.
The Chinese language department of Erbil’s Salahaddin University has been taking in students since 2019, and currently has 13 students who are pursuing a degree in the language.
“The language was very new in the Kurdistan Region. I wanted to join this department as it was a new challenge for me,” Hiwa Saadi, a 21 year old student from Erbil told Rudaw’s Payam Sarbast on Tuesday.
Internationally, Chinese Language Day is celebrated on April 20, students and faculty at Salahaddin University’s Chinese department showcased their projects and works on campus in an early celebration of the day.
“Our speaking level is really good, we have been here a few years, and despite the absence of a Chinese environment here where we can speak the language, our level is really good,” he added.
China’s interests in Iraq, anchored in energy to quench its growing needs, are expanding. Beijing is building power plants, factories, water treatment facilities, as well as badly needed schools across the country.
Dozens of contracts signed in recent years ensure China’s growing footprint.
In 2017, the Chinese consulate approached Salahaddin University’s College of Languages with the idea of a Chinese language department. Opening a school in the capital Baghdad came with security risks, but the Kurdistan Region was relatively secure.
“I have been teaching Chinese as a second language for more than 20 years,” Mu Yunfeng, a professor at the department said. “This year, 2022, we are going to have 30 students.”
“I think all people want to communicate and understand each other,” Yunfeng said, adding that language is a bridge to establish good communication.
China opened its consulate in Erbil in 2014 and has shared close ties with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).
Chinese Consul-General Ni Ruchi in September told Rudaw that the KRG has plans to open a representation office in China, adding that despite the ongoing numerous projects with Chinese investment in the Kurdistan Region, they are also exploring cooperation projects in the fields of water resources, electricity, and oil refinement.
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