Chinese Culture, Martial Arts Appealing to Beninese

Local Beninese attend a Chinese language class at the China Cultural Center in Cotonou on May 19, 2012. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com/Xu Fei]

As Chinese culture, craftsmanship and martial arts are becoming increasingly popular among people in the West African country of Benin, more and more people are coming to realize the power of culture, which serves as a bridge between China and one of the most underdeveloped nations in the world.

24-year-old Jagrici, who is in his second year of university, majoring in law, usually spends his weekends in the China Cultural Center in Cotonou, the capital of Benin, where the local Beninese learn filigree.

Jagrici explains that he attends classes there out of a strong interest for Chinese art, and he is also enthusiastic about depicting their lifestyle through Chinese craftsmanship.

"We use Chinese art to depict local landscapes and characters, for example, the sensational floating village of Ganvie in Benin. If I could go to China someday, I would like to study more of this type of workmanship."

Filigree is a traditional art form with deep roots in northwest China's Qinghai province. In cooperation with the relevant authorities in Qinghai, the China Cultural Center began offering students the necessary filigree resources in 2009 to help them study.

Compared with their initial work, the center's director Bai Guangming noticed some changes in their crafts. "They used to depict Chinese-related themes, like a peony, when they began. But now they want to display more of the things in their hometown."

Jagrici has many classmates in the China Cultural Center. They all share one ideal: becoming a better artist to build a better life for their families.

So some of these Beninese students sell their works in the capital. According to director Bai Guangming, their intricate ornamental filigree has been well received among the locals. The director used a recent artwork fair as an example.

"Not long ago, the center arranged a fair for students' filigree work, during which, some students even purchased their own work. We also sent some of their work as gifts to Benin's Ministry of Culture. Besides, dozens of works sold out completely," said Bai Guangming.

In fact, the China Cultural Center in Benin has designed a variety of classes for Beninese who are particularly enthusiastic about Chinese culture, including teaching them the Chinese language.

Xie Jun, a teacher who came from southwest China's municipality of Chongqing, is one of the teachers employed by the center to teach the locals standard Chinese. He arrived in Benin over three months ago.

He said his small class of 20 students shows a deep interest in Chinese studies. Xie Jun echoed his students when he stated:

"Benin is a poverty-stricken country, where Chinese people are found everywhere, including Chinese business people, cultural officials and Chinese language teachers. This leads him to believe China will lead the world over the coming ten years."

Xie Jun added that all of his students believe that mastering Chinese will be a huge advantage. "They have noticed that Chinese people conduct cultural exchanges with other nations worldwide. So if he or she can speak Chinese well, the advantages will better facilitate their communication with Chinese people, enabling them to get a better job."

In addition to filigree and Chinese language studies, the China Cultural Center also opened classes for Chinese martial arts, which Bai Guangming says is most appealing to the Beninese people.

"We discovered that locals are most interested in our martial arts class. We had planned to recruit 15 to 20 students for just one Chinese boxing class, but 50 to 60 locals came to us in one day as soon as they heard about the class opening. Almost 100 interested locals became our students, which encourages us to continue the martial arts classes next year."

To sustain these cultural exchange programs, money is obviously a key factor, and China Hi-tech Group Corporation is behind the martial arts classes. Wang Bo, general manager of BoSheng Construction Company Ltd, explains:

"We funded the Chinese boxing class with 500,000 West African CFA Francs. The cultural activities play a much bigger role than building a high-rise. Culture will definitely have an impact on people's mindsets by arousing their interests in Chinese culture. They will come to understand our psychology. This will make us get along easily with them."

Since the China Cultural Center opened in 1988 in Cotonou, it has been serving as a platform for the Beninese people and other Africans to deepen their understanding of China.

Bai Guangming (left), director of the China Cultural Center, poses for a photo with students who have won awards in a Chinese language contest at a prize-awarding ceremony at the center in Cotonou, Benin, on May 19, 2012. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com/Xu Fei]