A Chinese flag-raising ceremony has been held at the forecourt of the Office of International Relations (OIR) at the University of Cape Coast (UCC).
The ceremony was held to demonstrate the unity and sense of belonging between China and Ghana.
As the Chinese national anthem played in the background, the China Director of the Confucius Institute at UCC, Prof. Zang Yonghong; the Ghana Director of the Confucius Institute, Prof. Emmanuel Amo Ofori, as well as the Dean of the Office of International Relations at UCC, Prof Samuel Bert Boadi-Kusi, stood by a home-made pulley system to hoist the Chinese national flag and raised a hand to cap salute.
The Cadet Corps of University Practice Senior High School – a contingent of 20 students and one teacher, smartly dressed in their Cadet Uniforms, marched gallantly to the admiration of the crowd.
Speaking at the ceremony, Prof. Yonghong commended the longstanding collaboration between Hunan City University and UCC.
She encouraged students to study Chinese at the institute and experience the profound Chinese culture.
The China Director said the ceremony was an opportunity for students to learn the Chinese language and sustain their interest in the language.
She thanked UCC for its contributions to Chinese language education in Ghana.
For his part, the Dean of OIR, Prof. Boadi-Kusi, expressed satisfaction at the growing cultural exchange between China and Ghana.
He said recent developments pointed to the fact that Ghana and China relations had matured with increasing development support, saying he was optimistic the relationship would be further strengthened.
According to him, the growing influence of China globally, and in Africa, and particularly considering that China is Ghana’s largest trading partner in West Africa, the learning of the Chinese language was relevant.
He acknowledged the efforts of the Institute in furthering the understanding and appreciation of both the language and culture of China.
The Dean praised the Institute for hoisting the flag, stressing that the partnership would be longstanding.
Present at the event were staff members of OIR and the Confucius Institute.
Source: Documentation and Information Section-UCC
