516 Confucius Institutes and 1,076 Confucius Classrooms have been established in 142 countries and regions, according to the Confucius Institute Headquarters.
Confucius Institute (孔子学院, Kǒngzǐ Xuéyuàn) is non-profit educational organization affiliated with the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China, whose aim is to promote and teach Chinese culture and language around the world.
Among them, 135 Confucius Institutes were set up in 51 countries along the Belt and Road, it said in a statement.
Proposed by China in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative refers to the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, aimed at building a trade and infrastructure network connecting Asia with Europe and Africa along the ancient trade routes.
The Confucius Institute was established 13 years ago, more than 7 million students have been trained worldwide and 2.1 million are currently studying.
With the development of China’s economy and its extensive international exchanges, the global demand for learning Chinese has dramatically increased.
At present, 67 countries have enacted laws or regulations that list Chinese study as part of their national education systems, and Chinese majors or courses are offered in more than 170 countries.
Source: People.cn
Photo by Matteo Damiani, China-underground|CinaOggi