Greece Holds 2018 European Confucius Institutes Joint Conference
On the 10th anniversary of the establishment of Business Confucius Institute in Athens, 90 representatives of 33 Confucius Institutes from 14 countries across Europe gathered in Athens on May 21st to attend the 2018 European Confucius Institutes Joint Conference which lasted 2 days.
The conference mainly focused on how to improve the education quality of Confucius Institutes, according to Zhao Guocheng, Deputy Chief Executive of Confucius Institute Headquarters and Deputy Director-General of Hanban. As the number of Confucius Institutes is large, the problem faced by these institutes is how to run more efficiently with higher quality, he said.
Emmanouil Giakoumakis, Rector of Athens University of Economics and Business which jointly operates Business Confucius Institute in Athens with China, said that since its establishment in 2008, the Confucius Institute, as the only Confucius Institute operated in Athens, has offered certified Chinese courses to Greeks and organized activities and symposiums covering culture, philosophy, arts and business, so as to strengthen Greece-China relations. He added, ¡°Our Business Confucius Institute in Athens will become a prominent center for promoting Chinese culture and business in Greece.¡±
Wang Qiang, Political Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Greece, said that the Confucius Institute is not only a Chinese language school, but also an important platform for people to expand exchanges and deepen the friendship between the two countries, thus playing a positive role in the Belt and Road Initiative.
It¡¯s reported that since its establishment in 2004, the Confucius Institutes have developed rapidly. Up to now, 526 Confucius Institutes and 1,113 Confucius Classrooms have been set up in 147 countries and regions around the globe, among which 173 Confucius Institutes and 307 Confucius Classrooms were set up in 43 European countries.
The European Confucius Institutes Joint Conference is held biennially. This was the first time for Business Confucius Institute in Athens to hold the conference.
(Story by Liu Yongqiu, Xinhua News Agency, Athens, May 21st)
