The Confucius Institute of Dakar, Senegal and the Chinese Embassy have just concluded a "Chinese Bridge" competition. This is a lead up to the 17th edition of the international Chinese language contest, scheduled in China in July. The 2018 Chinese Bridge competition is themed "One World, One Family".

10 preselected candidates from schools and universities in Senegal participated in the fields of speaking, culture knowledge and artistic talents. Some learners of Chinese language say they use familiar properties and concepts to navigate.

MOUNIROU DIALLO LEARNER OF CHINESE "I am a Fulani. And I found that there are some similarities with Chinese in my language. There are many tones that we have and that the Chinese too have. Like when you want to say 'How are you' in Fulani you say, 'Tanalaton! Djamton!'. The other example I would give is funny. In Fulani "Jaja", means elder sister and the Chinese say "Jéjé" to say elder sister."

The Chinese Ambassador to Senegal also expressed satisfaction with the high standards of the contestants.

ZHANG XUN CHINESE AMBASSADOR TO SENEGAL "I am really happy. I say congratulations to all of them, and I hope that next year we will have even more candidates and brilliant results."

Winning contestant Sana BADJI, will represent Senegal in the international competition in China, which draws participants from more than 100 countries in 5 continents.