To facilitate the engagement of youths in the tourism industry, the Ministry of Youth and Sports is currently training 30 youths from all over the Western Division on basic Chinese language.

While introducing participants to the Chinese language, the training also familiarises them to the culture and some customs to assist them should they find work.

Facilitated by the University of the South Pacific’s Confucius Institute in Lautoka, the two week training is part of training conducted in the Western Division to empower youths on the job market.

Training coordinator, Karunagaran Nair, says training facilitated by the Ministry is designed to assist youths in their quest for work.

Nair adds that the current batch of trainees will also get an opportunity to take an internationally recognised Chinese Language Proficiency Test and excellent students could be nominated for a Chinese Bridge Competition in China.

Currently Mandarin Chinese is spoken by over 1 billion people around the world, about one fifth of the global population, and is the mother tongue of over 873 million people, making it the most widely spoken first language in the world.

The training will conclude this week.