INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image caption
Wang Li Hong Sooma in a class in Kampala, Uganda
Wang Li Hong Sooma, who moved to East
Africa from China more than two decades ago, is determined to teach Ugandans how to speak Mandarin.She and her Ugandan husband, Ayub Sooma,
are organising nine-month intensive courses for secondary school teachers to learn China's dominant language.The first 30 teachers have now
completed their training and have started holding Mandarin classes in schools across the country.The couple, who own their own secondary
school on the outskirts of the capital, Kampala, can be seen as the perfect symbol of blossoming China-Uganda relations
Together they can chat in a mixture of English, Mandarin and some of the local language Luganda.Image copyrightWang Li Hong Sooma Image
caption
Wang Li Hong Sooma (R) and Ayub Sooma (L) faced opposition at first to their union
They met 26
years ago in Beijing, when Mr Sooma was studying at Tsinghua University
Though at first, Mrs Wang says, it was not easy for them to be together."It was a war! At that time, they thought I was a very loose girl to
But I knew he is very honest and has a good heart to help other people."They now have three children and Uganda has been their home since
New frontierIn that time, the economic relationship between China and Uganda has grown tremendously and the couple are in a perfect position
How easy is it to learn MandarinThere is no alphabet, just thousands of characters
There are so many that no-one can give a definitive total, but it is believed to be around 60,000It uses a tonal system - four-and-a-half
tones are used, meaning a single word can have many meanings"Ma" can mean mother, horse, hemp, or a reproach Getting the right tone:Tone one
- A fairly high, even toneTone two - A rising tone, much like the sound at the end of a sentence with a question markTone three - Falls then
Like the second, but must dip firstTone four - Sharp falling tone, a little like how the end of a sentence with an exclamation mark
soundsHalf tone - Pronounce words with light tones in about half the time you would a normal word, without putting emphasis on itThey want
to turn their school into a new frontier for Mandarin and Chinese culture
Their teacher-training programme is being paid for by the government in Beijing - though it is not clear how much is being stumped up for
the initiative.Image caption
Another 40 secondary school teachers have signed up to learn Mandarin
"They
are funding these Chinese teachers [from China], their salary and their accommodation
They also help the trainees - providing their food, their accommodation and some allowance," says Mrs Wang.Most Mandarin lessons in Africa
are taught through Chinese government-run Confucius Institutes
The first opened in Kenya in 2005 and there are now nearly 60 across the continent.Some schools in Zambia and Tanzania also offer the
subject, and the scheme in Uganda is sub-contracted to Mrs Wang by the Confucius Institute.You may also be interested in:Forty more teachers
are now enrolled and classes start at 08:00 and finish at 22:00 from Monday to Friday.To become fluent and be able to teach a language
within nine months is a huge undertaking, though Pavin Mulokwa, a teacher from the western district of Mbarara, sees it as an opportunity to
broaden her job prospects.Another trainee, Praise Twebaze, agrees and hopes it will enable him to travel too."We can go beyond lands where
they use English but as well to lands where they use Chinese," he says.For 13-year-old Denis Mulungi, the Mandarin lessons he has just
started at Lubiri Secondary School in central Kampala could shape his future career."Learning Chinese, it can help me get good jobs in
Learning Chinese can help me go abroad
It could be easy for me to communicate with other people who know Chinese, if I go to China."Chinese imperialismIt is not just the Ugandans
who see this course as a life-changing opportunity
Gao Ya Hui, who has been teaching Mandarin in Uganda for a year, says it has changed her perceptions of Africa.TheIndianSubcontinentWhen I
came here it changed my stereotypes about African people"From Xian city in central China, the 39-year-old left her husband and child behind
to come and teach but was warned by family and friends not to because of "diseases and war"."When I came here, it changed my stereotypes
When I go back to China, I will introduce the real Africa to the people in China and change their way of looking at Africa." But some, like
Fred Muhumuza - a Ugandan economist who has followed the growth of trade between China and Uganda - says questions have been raised about
China's motives for funding such a scheme and whether the initiative has been forced on the Ugandan government
He lists some the concerns he has heard: "Is this Chinese imperialism Taking over Africa's resources, taking over even Africa's cultures and
languages and wiping out everybody else" Narrowing the trade gapAggrey David Kibenge, Uganda's education ministry spokesman, dismissed such
apprehension, saying it was not political and that it was not unusual for a foreign government or organisation to support the teaching of a
particular language.Image caption
Lubiri Secondary School in Kampala is already holding Mandarin classes
Supporters of Mandarin lessons point to the benefits for Uganda from economics and trade: Giving young Ugandans a better chance at competing
on the global stage and an opportunity to narrow a massive trade gap.According to the World Bank data, Uganda's imports from China were
$622m (£474m) in 2013 and rose to $985m in 2017.These are mainly consumer goods, machinery, electronics and textiles.However, exports of
Ugandan products to China reduced over the same period from $71.9m in 2013 to $33.4m in 2017.Mrs Wang's goal is to have 100 teachers trained
up and teaching Mandarin in 50 Ugandan schools - both those that are privately and government run - by 2021
She sees it as a win-win situation, giving the example of how Chinese students have benefited from learning English in their understanding
of America."We learnt their language, we understand them
We learnt their language, we learnt their technology
We learnt their skills and then we developed."
