CRI听力:HK Businessman Promotes Chinese language in Vietnam

Dr. Jonathan Koon-shum Choi is the chairman of the Hong Kong-based Sunwah Group which was established in 1957.

Every year, the group invests one million U.S. dollars in a number of public welfare programs in Vietnam.

This includes Chinese language teaching projects to help educational development in the southeast Asian country.

Operating businesses in Vietnam for 45 years, Choi says promoting the Chinese language is a much more important task.

"You can see the Chinese language in many places such as the temples in Hanoi. But many elite Vietnamese students don't understand Chinese. The language is used to record history -- the Vietnamese history written in the Chinese language. So I think it's not good if the students don't understand the Chinese language."

Now the Jonathan KS Choi Cultural Center has been set up in the Vietnam National University based in the capital city Hanoi.

The center has been hosting various public events including free lectures to help school drop-outs learn Chinese.
In addition, a three-year training program has been set up for workers in the local community.

Professor Yuen-Tsang Woon Ki is a main lecturer with the program.

"The training will last for three years. This is just a start. We will have more teachers joining in the program to help promote the development of social work in Vietnam. And this also reflects Hong Kong's support to Vietnam's social work development."

Knowing that Chinese President Xi Jinping is paying a two-day visit in Vietnam, Dr. Choi is looking forward to deeper cultural ties between the two neighbors.

"I sincerely hope that our country can strengthen exchange with Vietnam in various fields of the economy, culture to education to reach a goal of mutual understanding, mutual respect and mutual trust."

Over the decades, Dr. Choi has been promoting educational development through China and ASEAN countries.
 
He was also the founder of the Chinese Academy of Sciences Honorary Academician Foundation, the Zhongshan Sun Wah Science and Technology Institute and various other educational institutions.

For CRI, I am Wang Mengzhen.