（26 May 2022）

H.E. Charles Savarin, President of the Commonwealth of Dominica and Mrs. Savarin,

Hon. Dr. Roosevelt Skerrit, Prime Minister of Dominica,

Hon. Octavia Alfred, Minister of Education, Human Resource Planning, Vocational Training and National Excellence,

Hon. Cassanni Laville, Minister of Public Works and the Digital Economy,

Other government officials,

Mr. Zhao Lingshan, Vice President and Secretary-General of the Chinese International Education Foundation,

Dr. Donald Peters, President of the Dominica State College,

Dr. Zha Xianyou, Chairperson of the University Council of Xidian University,

Members of the Media,

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good Morning!

It gives me great pleasure to be here today, to attend the Opening Ceremony of the Confucius Classroom at Dominica State College. It's the first Confucius Classroom to be established in Dominica. This is also a landmark event in the educational, language and cultural exchanges between China and Dominica. 

The Confucius Classroom is a non-profit education organization jointly built by China and foreign countries. It aims to meet the needs of people worldwide for learning Chinese language (Mandarin), enhance understanding of Chinese culture, promote the development of multiculturalism and build a harmonious world. To date, over 150 countries and regions have established Confucius Institutes or Confucius Classrooms around the world, including many Caribbean countries such as Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, The Bahamas, Grenada, etc. Various language and cultural exchange are flourishing in these countries.

Good things take time to happen. Two years ago, Dominica State College and its Chinese partner Xidian University put forward the idea to establish a Confucius Classroom, but it was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic. Last month, overcoming the impact of the pandemic, two teachers from the Xidian University finally arrived in Dominica, making the formal launching of the Confucius Classroom possible.

Xidian University is a very renowned university in China with rich experience in teaching Chinese as a foreign language outside China. In 2015, Xidian established its first Confucius Institute with the Paderborn University in Germany. Dominica State College is the second partner institute of Xidian University, while the third one is under negotiation. Mr. Qin Ling and Ms. Li Zhijun from Xidian University are excellent teachers with rich teaching experience and very popular among students. I believe that the two schools of China and Dominica are bound to establish good friendship and cooperation, building the Confucius Classroom as an important platform for Dominican teachers, students and the public to learn Chinese language and understand Chinese culture.

At present, China provides more than 10 government scholarships to Dominica every year. The first barrier to Dominican students who wish to study in China is the language. Completely different from English characters composed of letters, Chinese characters are pictographs in a square shape, so the learning method is different from that of English. It usually takes one or two years for them to adapt to a Chinese language environment. The establishment of the Confucius Classroom at Dominica State College will be a convenience for Dominican students to learn Chinese language and understand Chinese culture, so that they can be one step ahead and win at the starting line as they pursue studies in China.

As we all know, China is the second largest economy in the world and has close economic and trade ties with the rest of world including Caribbean countries. Chinese language is also one of the six official languages of the United Nations. At present, about 25 million people outside China are learning Mandarin. About 70 countries have officially incorporated Chinese language teaching into their national education systems. So, knowing more about Chinese language and culture will open the door for conducting business with China, and provide more opportunities for the youth.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Confucius was a great philosopher, politician and educator in ancient China more than 2,000 years ago. He has a famous quote on learning: "They who love it are better than those who know it, and they who delight in it are better than those who love it." Chinese culture is diverse and profound with a long history of more than 5,000 years. We have fascinating poems and lyrics of the Tang and Song dynasties, classics and historical works that have been passed down for thousands of years, as well as charming operas and dances. People of Dominica are welcome to learn and enjoy Chinese language and culture. As Chinese ambassador to Dominica, I find that Dominican people are very friendly to China. Many of them can say “你好”"hello" and “谢谢”"thank you" in Chinese. Many friends also expressed their willingness to learn Chinese and they should be very happy to hear the news of the establishment of the Confucius Classroom in Dominica. I sincerely wish you all success in your studies here.

China is an open and inclusive country. We always advocate cultural exchanges and mutual learning among different countries. We always believe that only exchanges can inspire ideas, and only mutual learning can bring progress. In China, we encourage Chinese people to learn about foreign cultures and foreign languages such as English, French, and Spanish. Before 2019, the year before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, more than 100 million Chinese people had traveled abroad every year. Recently, when I paid a courtesy call on His Excellency President Savarin, he suggested to me that the Confucius Classroom could also help Chinese people living and working in Dominica and the Caribbean to learn English. I can't agree more. In addition, I am very interested in Dominican culture. The people here are very optimistic, your traditional dance is very distinctive, and the Creole music festival is also very famous. It's a real pleasure for me to promote cultural exchanges and cooperation between China and Dominica, allowing more Chinese people to appreciate the unique charm of the Dominican culture.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

China and Dominica are good friends, trusted partners and dear brothers. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 2004, China and Dominica have maintained continuous high-level engagement, achieved fruitful cooperation outcomes in various fields, and gradually increased people-to-people and cultural exchanges. I sincerely congratulate on the successful opening of the Confucius Classroom. I also hope that with the joint efforts of the Dominica State College and Xidian University, the Confucius Classroom will become a platform for cultural exchanges and mutual learning between China and Dominica, and a bridge for closer ties between the two peoples. Finally, I sincerely wish the friendship between China and Dominica become stronger and last forever!

Thank you!