Interview: Chinese language studies to boost cultural diversity, exchange in Ghanaian university

ACCRA, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- As the cooperation between China and Ghana forges ahead, more and more Ghanaian universities are riding the wave of the Chinese language popularity to promote cultural diversity and exchange on campus.

On Tuesday, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), one of the most renowned universities in Ghana, became the latest host of a Confucius Institute in the West African country.

Daniel Duah, dean of the International Programs Office at KNUST, told Xinhua in an interview that KNUST has always considered China an important partner and the timing was ripe to include Chinese language studies in the curriculum.

"We decided to explore our partnership with the Hubei University of Automotive Technology to have a Confucius Institute here, not only for the language but also for the cultural exchange and international academic exchange programs," Duah stated.

He said that with the rapid changes occurring in the world, coupled with the lessons from the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a need for learners to understand different cultures and languages around the world.

"The world is a changing place, and COVID-19 taught us that the world is a global village, and you can not go far without partnerships. It is an opportunity for our students to have that diversity in culture that we desire on campus," he said.

He said that the university has already included the Chinese language as a course, but the presence of the Confucius Institute would help KNUST introduce a degree program in Chinese.

He said KNUST would work hard in partnership with their Chinese counterparts to ensure that the Confucius Institute becomes unique, yielding positive dividends for Ghana and China.

Duah lauded the Chinese Ambassador to Ghana Lu Kun for his leading role in ensuring that KNUST finally received the nod to host the third Confucius Institute in Ghana.

"After the subsiding of COVID-19, the ambassador personally visited us and has been a huge pillar for this to happen, and we believe that this is going to deepen further the bilateral relations between Ghana and China," Duah concluded.

In recent years, studying the Chinese language has been increasingly popular in Ghana, where two Confucius Institutes have been established at the University of Ghana and the University of Cape Coast, respectively, since 2013.