China is beckoning for a number of South African students who have landed an opportunity to study in that country.
76 young South African hospitality students will embark on a Work Integrated Learning Programme in China for 12 months.
A send-off ceremony was held for the students – mostly drawn from rural areas – in Johannesburg on Tuesday.
The students will have a life-time opportunity of working and being exposed to the Chinese Tourism and Hospitality industry.
They will also gain on-the-job experience which would ensure that on their return they stand better chances of securing employment in South Africa.
Speaking at the send-off ceremony, South Africa’s Deputy Minister for Education and Higher Learning Buti Manamela urged the students to use the opportunity to forge even better ties between the two countries.
“This has an added advantage in that you have an opportunity to learn a new language, to explore a different culture, an opportunity to see a different country. It’s an opportunity to really learn about what other people do because what underpins our relations with China, which is the people to people exchange mechanism, is about people interacting with people beyond leaders meeting and signing agreements,” Manamela said.
