On April 20, the ribbon cutting ceremony and inauguration activities for the Confucius Institute (CI), jointly established by CUPL and University of West Indies (UWI) at Cave Hill, were held at Bridgetown, the capital of Barbados. A total of over 100 attendees were present at the ceremony, including CUPL President Prof. Huang Jin, Ms. Wang Ke, Chinese Ambassador to Barbados, Hon. Ronald D Jones, M.P., Barbadian Minister of Education, Science, Technology & Innovation, Senator, the Honorable Maxine McClean, Barbadian Minster of Foreign Affairs & Foreign Trade, Professor, Sir Hilary Beckles, Vice-Chancellor of UWI, representatives of diplomatic corps and delegates of Barbadian government.

With Mr. Kenneth Walters, the Campus Registrar of UWI at Cave Hill serving as the host，the ceremony started at around 10 o’clock in the morning. Barbadian co-director of the aforesaid Confucius Institute, Mr. Ché Leon C Corbin delivered a welcome speech, while his Chinese counterpart, Mr.Song Qingbao read a congratulation letter from Ms. Xu Lin, Director General of Hanban and Chief Executive of Confucius Institute Headquarters.

Sir Hilary Beckles, Prof. Huang Jin, Ms. Wang Ke and Hon. Ronald D Jones, M.P. addressed the ceremony by turns. Sir Hilary Beckles expressed his wish that the new institute would serve as a learning center for Chinese languageand its culture at UWI (Cave Hill), which is the first step on what he calls the “Silk Road of Education” and a bridge communicating with the world. He also hoped that, by using the potentials presented by the institute, universities from the two countries can boost their cooperation and increase education exchange, thereby further consolidating the friendship between the two peoples. Prof. Huang mentioned that the Confucius Institute, jointly established by CUPL and UWI at Cave Hill, was a fruit of the two universities’ earnest and sincere cooperation under the support from Confucius Institute Headquarters (Hanban). He firmly believed that through the joint efforts of the two sides, the setting up of that CI would serve as the golden opportunity to materialize a more comprehensive, deeper and higher level of communication and collaboration between the two universities and their homelands in certain areas like culture, thoughts, arts and other related subjects. Consequently, the collaboration and understanding between the two peoples will be further strengthened, the desire of common growth could also be realized in the long run. Ms. Wang Ke remarked that the creation of this Confucius Institute in Barbados was an implementation of the instructions given by Chinese President Xi Jinping during his state visit to the Caribbean region in 2013. The institute, being the first of its kind in that region,would serve as an extensive platform for exchange and teamwork between the two universities, the two countries and the two peoples, and would also be an ideal channel to further advance the friendship and mutual benefits in the fields of education, economy and politics. Last but not least, it would be a great tool to achieve win-win results through consistent working-together. Mr. Ronald Jones mentioned that he was very glad to attend the inauguration ceremony for the Confucius Institute at UWI (Cave Hill) and happily witnessed the full range of that friendly cooperation: from the inking of the agreement to the founding of the institute. Mr. Jones said that Barbados could benefit greatly by learning from China’s splendid culture crystallized in its long history. He hoped the two sides would understand each other, learn from each other and maintain a sustainable development in a common effort.

At the end, in the presence of the dignitaries and guests, the Confucius Institute at University of West Indies at Cave Hill was formally launched.

In the same afternoon, the first board meeting of the Confucius Institute was convened. The meeting was co-hosted by Prof. Huang Jin and Sir Hilary Beckles. Eleven board members (or their authorized representatives) attended that session. The annual work plan for its first term (from 2015 to 2016), its annual budget plan and cooperative arrangements between the two universities in certain areas like jurisprudence and humanities were discussed. The proposed startup budget plan and its logo design were adopted. And board members also took the chance to exchange ideas on other related matters.

A gala marking that special occasion and a wonderful exhibition on Chinese culture were staged by the institute in the same evening. Twelve performances including dancing, folk music, martial arts and singing were showcased by the Art Troupe of CUPL, whose performance was greeted with thunderous applause from the audience. The martial arts training and folksong teaching enable the locals to experience the unique charm of Chinese culture on the venue. The Chinese culture exhibition, themed “Poetry, Classics, Graceful Manners, Scholarly Arts and Music”, seemed to bring all aspects of Chinese culture to the thresholds of the locals, and provided them with a face to face contact opportunity. The exhibition will last until the end of this April.