On April 29, the 2024 Botswana Finals of “Chinese Bridge” Chinese Proficiency Competition for Foreign College Students was held in the Confucius Institute atUniversity of Botswana(UB). Ambassador Fan Yongand his wife Counselor Cui Yin attended the event and delivered a keynote speech. Mr.Keoletile Mmopi, RepresentativefromMinistry of Higher Education, Prof. Thapelo Otlogetswe, Dean of Faculty of Humanities of UB, Prof. Rosaleen Nhlekisana, local Director of the Confucius Institute of UB and Prof. Pu Durong, Director of the Confucius Institute of UB participatedin the event.

Ambassador Fan said that Chinese language has a long history and has played a crucial role in the continuous development of Chinese civilization in the past 5000 years. The theme of this year’s competition is “One World, One Family”. This idea is in line with the concept of "building a community with a shared future for mankind" proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013. He hopes young Batswana could use the Chinese language as a key to discover the Chinese culture and to make friends with Chinese people, so as to carry forward the traditional friendship between China and Botswana and do your part in building a China-Africa community of shared future.

College students from the UB and other universities participated in this competition. This event is hosted by the Chinese Embassy in Botswana and organized by the Confucius Institute at UB.