Confucius, JUYE Tanzania award scholarships to 27 students

DAR ES SALAAM: TWENTY-SEVEN students from the Confucius Institute at the University of Dar es Salaam have been awarded scholarships to continue their Chinese language studies after demonstrating strong performance at various levels of training.

The scholarships cover tuition fees as a way of recognizing the students’ effort and commitment.

The scholarship award ceremony was organized by JUYE Tanzania Cement Company Ltd in collaboration with the Confucius Institute at the University of Dar es Salaam. It was held in Dar es Salaam and attended by institutional leaders and students.

Speaking at the event, the Tanzanian Director of the Confucius Institute, Dr Mussa Hans, said the scholarships would help both financially capable and less advantaged students to progress to the next levels of study without interruption.

He also thanked JUYE for its continued support and motivation for the students.

Dr Hans explained that the scholarship system is based on students’ academic performance.

Those who performed well at the first level had their fees paid for the second level, while those who excelled at the second level received funding for the third level.

Students who achieved excellent results at the fourth level were awarded cash prizes.

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He added that the level of sponsorship varies, with some students receiving 100 percent funding, others 90 percent, 70 percent, and some 50 percent. The 50 percent sponsorship was provided as motivation, as the number of deserving students was high.

According to Dr Hans, the aim of this arrangement is to encourage young people to study hard, knowing they have a chance to receive financial support, which will also help them gain recognition in other Confucius Institutes.

On her part, the Chairperson of the Board of JUYE Tanzania Ltd, Ms Xu Hongjuan, said that since the establishment of the Confucius Institute in 2013, it has served as an important bridge for educational and cultural exchange between China and Tanzania. She added that more than 60,000 students have benefited from this cooperation between the two countries.

Ms Xu noted that Chinese language skills provided through the institute help young people in various fields, including the economy, business, cultural exchange, and educational assistance.

She emphasized that the language has become a key pillar in strengthening the long-term friendship between China and Tanzania.

She concluded by saying that beyond its business activities, JUYE Tanzania Ltd has been at the forefront of supporting youth development in different parts of the country.

One of the scholarship beneficiaries, Imran Khatau, said that Chinese is not as difficult as many people believe and that he decided to study it because of the many opportunities associated with the language.

“I was advised by two people that there are currently many Chinese companies in the country, so it is important to learn their language to make business activities easier. I came believing Chinese was a difficult language, but after starting to learn it, I have discovered that it is actually easy,” he said