The Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China, Ms. Sun Chunlan together with several ministers as well as the Chinese Minister of Education, Mr. Chen Baosheng, visited our University on Wednesday, 21st November 2018 on the occasion of the unveiling ceremony of Confucius Institute at the University of Finance and Administration.
After a brief meeting of representatives of the University with Vice Premier in a smaller circle, the unveiling ceremony of the Confucius Institute at the University of Finance and Administration took place at the Congress Center. Rector Bohuslav Šenkýřová opened the ceremony with her salutation, followed by the recital of a Chinese poem by a student of the second year of Marketing Communication Taťána Stepanova. Then a traditional Czech song “Korunovační intráda” by Jiří Ignác Linka was played by prof. Zahradník together with his two students from the Academy of Performing Arts. Pavel Doleček, Deputy Minister for Research and Higher Education section of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, greeted all the present guests, who filled the whole Congress Center of the University. The Vice Premier, during her speech, assured all the guests that China counts the Confucius institutes as the envoy of culture and mutual understanding. She stressed that the Institute at the University of Finance and Administration is planned as a key institution for Central and Eastern Europe.
Following this, the Vice Premier handed over to the Rector of the University a gift of 2,000 books, a series of internships and other support for university students. In the presence of important guests, including Vratislav Mynář, Head of the Office of the President of the Republic, the foundation board of the Confucius Institute was finally revealed.
The agreement to open the Confucius Institute at the University of Finance and Administration was signed at the beginning of November in the presence of the President of the Czech Republic, Mr. Miloš Zeman and other representatives of the Czech Republic on the occasion of the Czech-Chinese Business Forum at the first Chinese International Import Trade Fair in Shanghai.
The Confucius Institute at the University of Finance and Administration will be distinguished, among other things, by the existence of the so-called economic-business think-tank. The Institute will be officially opened in autumn next year.
Confucius institutes are public non-profit educational institutions whose purpose is to promote Chinese language and culture, to support mutual exchange of information and education. At present, there are 531 institutes worldwide, for example in the US, France, Germany, Poland and Switzerland.
