ARGENTINA: Argentine students flock to Mandarin language schools as interest in China grows

Record ID: 445262

  • Title: ARGENTINA: Argentine students flock to Mandarin language schools as interest in China grows
  • Date: 27th October 2006
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) UNIVERSITY OF BUENOS AIRES DEAN OF FACULTY OF AGRONOMY, LORENZO BASSO, SAYING: "The importance of China today is at an international level in everything from commerce, technology, qualifications, etc. So many people in different fields find it necessary to learn Mandarin to develop themselves in the present, and for the future."
  • Embargoed: 11th November 2006 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Argentina
  • Country: Argentina
  • Topics: Lifestyle
  • Reuters ID: LVACVHXKPWS95YN62KFXIH26ZWW2
  • Story Text: Chinese lanterns, bright red ornamental knots and serpentine figurines - the looks and smells of China have been permeating throughout Latin America, and this neighbourhood in the Argentine capital is no different.
    This district, which lies in the north of Buenos Aires, is known as the "Chinese Quarter" - and you can even buy traditional oriental delicacies here such as braised chicken feet.
    But it's not just trinkets and culinary delights that are on the menu. As China voraciously scours the region for everything from oil to lumber, business people have realized the great potential and great profits available when you get involved with the Red Dragon.
    That prospect jolted the popularity of Mandarin Chinese classes, like those served at this language institute that is one of the arms of the University of Buenos Aires.
    "The importance of China today is at an international level in everything from commerce, technology, qualifications, etc. So many people in different fields find it necessary to learn Mandarin to develop themselves in the present, and for the future," said Lorenzo Basso, Dean of the Faculty of Agronomy at the University of Buenos Aires, and responsible for the administration of the Central University for Languages in Buenos Aires.
    A group of middle-aged students in a largely Spanish-speaking region battling it out in the classroom with Chinese characters and the distinct sounds of Mandarin Chinese might seem unusual. But Beijing is in a relentless quest for oil, coal, iron ore and copper for its factories, soybean and poultry to feed its 1.3 billion people, lumber for housing, and fish meal for its livestock; and Latin America, with its vast farmlands and ample oil reserves and mineral deposits, has become a prime destination for investors and others from China.
    People from all walks of life are seeing the benefits in getting familiar with the local language.
    "Since I am a translator of English and French I like learning all other similarly structured languages. And in the future I think that maybe I also want to continue translating - I really like it a lot. Every time I like it more," Mandarin Chinese student Maria Victoria Tuya said.
    The Chinese economy has been growing at 9 percent annually and President Hu Jintao's government already has investments in the Chilean copper industry and gas and oil fields in Ecuador, Argentina and Bolivia. Beijing also cemented a 5 billion US dollar oil deal with President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, which is seeking to diversify exports to other countries beyond the United States, while Chinese companies are investing in farmland and energy installations in Brazil.
    Recently Beijing, that two years ago pledged 100 billion U.S> dollars in investments for several South American countries, said it also wants to bankroll road, port and railroad developments that would help bring exports more quickly to China. It also signed a free-trade agreement with Chile, its first with a Latin American country.
    The total value of trade between China and Latin America rose from just over 10 billion USD in 2000 to 50 billion USD last year, according to Chinese trade data.
    International business consultants such as Jorge Tuero say the opportunities are too good to miss, and the way to make them happen is hit the language books first.
    "The first thing I have to do is get to know the culture. If I do not know the culture and the way of thinking, then I cannot sell sell them (anything), not even one apple. If I do not consider the 'how' more than the 'what' - everyone believes that you have to consider the 'what' - no, the 'what' can be anything," said Jorge Tuero, International business consultant.
    Veering toward China, though, is far from easy for entrepreneurs and students from a region that has long been intertwined with the giant to the north. The United States remains the biggest investor in Latin America, its trade with the region eight times that of China's. English prevails as a second language.
    Mandarin, on the other hand, is considered far harder to learn, with dialects and a tenor significantly different from the phonetic cadences of Spanish and Portuguese. Yet the Chinese language is making gains, as is the revolutionary idea of looking west across the Pacific for business opportunities.
    "For business reasons, to get me into some company in the human resources sector, in the communication sector with the objective of establishing relations with China, and also because of the career that I have chose, which is journalism, I will be able to open out into a media organisation in China," said Juan Sanbria, a student.
    Universities across Latin America, from Mexico to Buenos Aires, are founding Asian studies programs and teaching Chinese. Some are expensive one-on-one tutorials and others are fly-by-night language academies staffed by illegal Chinese immigrants, but they are all being inundated with new students - young and old.
    "To the Chinese, to the Taiwanese, to everyone, to hear an Argentine who knows how to speak Mandarin gives them a lot of confidence in that person. They would say, 'Ah, This ones has an interest, as he also has studied the language in order to do business and have relations with us.' This is also very good for the Chinese culture," said one Mandarin professor Yen Ying Chen.
    China, too, sees great opportunity in Latin America, and thousands of young Chinese are in Latin America doing their part by learning Spanish and Portuguese. Many of them are university students who hope to complete some of their tertiary studies in the region, before going on to become some of China's next generation of leaders.
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