The first Confucius Institute for Business in South Africa, and on the African continent, will be established at the Tshwane University of Technology in the near future.
Tshwane vice-chancellor Errol Tyobeka and the Chinese Deputy Minister of Education, Yuan Guiren, on behalf of the office of the Chinese Language Council International, signed a letter of cooperation intent in June.
Other partners in the project are Sunrise Project Consultants International, the Southern Africa-China Science, Engineering, Technology and Education Association, and the office of the Chinese Language Council International under the ministry of education in China.
The Chinese government announced a grant of R2,8-million over a three-year period for this project.
It has also pledged further substantial financial assistance for professional training initiatives and capacity building under the protocols signed by two governments in 2004 and 2006. These projects are directly linked to South Africa’s Asgisa skills development programme.
The Confucius Institute for Business at Tshwane University will collaborate with China in the fields of educational programmes, research and development projects, with a view to improving mutual understanding and friendship between South Africa and China. The institute will also promote, through teaching and learning, the Chinese culture and language as well as South African languages and culture in both countries in order to facilitate economic, educational and cultural cooperation.