By Wan Yumeng

On June 16th local time, the 17th "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition for Foreign Secondary School Students South Africa Final was successfully held in Johannesburg.

The competition was organised by the Chinese Embassy in South Africa and hosted by the Confucius Classroom at Chinese Culture and International Education Exchange Centre.

Guests in attendance included Pan Qingjiang, Chinese Consul General in Johannesburg, and Li Xudong, Education Counsellor of the Chinese Embassy in South Africa.

Twelve contestants competed fiercely through a written test, Chinese speech, and talent show. Zoe Yingst from the Confucius Classroom at Cape Town Mathematics and Science Academy and Mpemnyama Piko Hlobisa from the Confucius Institute at Stellenbosch University won first prizes. Mpemnyama Piko Hlobisa will represent South Africa in the global finals in China.

Guests and participants taking a group photo after the event.

Distinguished guests at the event included Pan Qingjiang, Chinese Consul General in Johannesburg, Li Xudong, Education Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in South Africa, Wei Dongze, Secretary-General of the South Africa-China Economic and Trade Association, and Clarence Brignaut, Chief Language Education Expert at the South African Department of Basic Education.

The judging panel comprised Zhao Yinan, Chief Correspondent of the Johannesburg Bureau of China Central Television; Wei Dongze, Secretary General of the South Africa-China Economic and Trade Association; Li Xun, Chinese Advisor at the South African Department of Basic Education; Fu Shuying, a member of the Independent Examination Board's Chinese Matriculation Exam Question Setting Group; and representatives from the Bank of China Johannesburg Branch.

Consul General Pan Qingjiang delivering the keynote speech.

In his keynote speech, Consul General Pan highlighted that the "Chinese Bridge" is a bridge of civilizations.

Last March, President Xi Jinping proposed the Global Civilization Initiative, advocating for exchanges and mutual learning among different civilizations to promote human progress.

On June 7th this year, the 78th United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution proposed by China to establish June 10th as the "International Day of Dialogue among Civilizations." Language, as a carrier of culture, is the cornerstone of civilization exchanges.

The "Chinese Bridge" competition embodies the spirit of the Global Civilization Initiative and has become a significant platform for cultural exchange between China and the world, including South Africa.

Wei Dongze, Secretary-General of the South African Chinese Economic and Trade Association, delivering the keynote speech.

Wei Dongze emphasised in his keynote speech the mutual learning of civilizations between China and South Africa over the years. He expressed gratitude for the efforts of Confucius Institutes and Confucius Classrooms in promoting Chinese culture and looked forward to deepening Sino-South African friendship.

Clarence Brignaut, an expert from the South African Basic Education Department, delivering the keynote speech.

Clarence Blignaut highlighted in his keynote speech that learning Mandarin and Chinese culture broadens participants' international horizons and competitiveness. He praised the enthusiasm and talent of the students and called for a focus on their holistic development. He also acknowledged the successful and important educational cooperation between South Africa and China, recognising the contributions of Confucius Institutes in promoting educational exchanges.

Dr. Lu Zhilei, the Foreign Director of the hosting Confucius Classroom, gave a keynote speech, introducing the "Chinese Bridge" for secondary school students and information of the Confucius Classroom at Chinese Culture and International Education Exchange Centre and how the Confucius Classroom had hosted the Chinese Bridge many times.

The competition was filled with a strong sense of friendship between China and South Africa. During the talent show, the contestants' performances were outstanding and memorable.

One contestant's diablo performance was superb, with seamless movements that drew cheers from the audience. Another contestant sang a challenging Chinese song, "Upwards to the Moon," with a clear voice that moved everyone present. A third contestant performed a beautiful Chinese dance, "Big Fish," as if leading the audience through a journey of seeing a big fish traversing thousands of miles in the wind and rain. In the calligraphy display, one contestant wrote the four characters "Beauty in Harmony" with a brush, demonstrating elegant and vigorous calligraphy skills. After fierce competition, the contestants received various awards.

The warm-up performance featured students from the Johannesburg University Confucius Institute, students from the Chinese School of the Chinese Enterprise Association, and representatives of South African primary school students, presenting Chinese dances, solo Chinese songs, and a violin solo "I Love You, China."

Hosts Xin Chengle and An Yifei hosting the event

A participant introducing their story of learning Chinese.

A participant sharing their experiences of studying and living in China.

A participant singing the Chinese song ‘Upwards to the Moon.’

Education Counselor Li Xudong (first from the left) taking a group photo with all the players including the contestant who are about to go to China.

Among the audience were several principals who are about to participate in the "Chinese Bridge" Principals Delegation to China. They expressed their hope to introduce Chinese courses in their schools after witnessing the exciting competition. High school students from the host teaching sites also expressed their excitement and desire to participate in the competition next year.

The "Chinese Bridge" Chinese competition, which began in 2002, aims to promote Chinese culture, enhance the understanding and recognition of China among people worldwide, and foster exchanges and cooperation between China and other countries in politics, economy, culture, and education. Since the first competition, more than 1.4 million students from over 150 countries have participated in the "Chinese Bridge" due to their love for the Chinese language, with more than 100 million overseas viewers following the competition every year.

The "Chinese Bridge" is a bridge of friendship. Chinese is one of the world's oldest, richest, and most beautiful languages, carrying and continuing a five-thousand-year-old uninterrupted Chinese civilization. In recent years, more and more South Africans have started learning Chinese, showing interest in China's modernization and vigorously supporting the development of China-South Africa and China-Africa relations. It is hoped that through the "Chinese Bridge" competition, more South African friends will love and learn Chinese, understand Chinese culture, and share the vivid stories of China-Africa friendship, becoming the new generation of inheritors of China-South Africa friendship and promoters of the China-South Africa and China-Africa community of shared future.

*Yumeng is from the Confucius Classroom at Chinese Culture and International Education Exchange Centre.