Kunene scores 3RD place in Chinese completion
Durban
Excerpt: DUT flag flies high in the South Africa Confucius Institute competition.
By: Senzo Masinga
Images: Nonjabuliso Kunene
The Durban University of Technology (DUT) recently hosted the 22nd Chinese Bridge (chinese speaking competition held anually for foreign students) with a theme “One World, One Family” in collaboration with the Centre for Language Education and Cooperation and the Chinese Embassy in South Africa. It consisted of 14 contestants from six Confucius Institutes around the country, including DUT, and it took place in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa on the 26th of May 2023.
This Mandarin competition was sponsored by ZPMC Engineering Africa (Pty) Ltd and it consisted of three parts: a written test, a themed speech, and finally, a talent show, where contestants showcased their talents with outstanding speeches, impressive performances and excellent Chinese language skills.
The 1st prize for this year’s competition was won by the University of Cape Town, the 2nd one went to Stellenbosch University, and the University of Johannesburg and Durban University of Technology obtained 3rd prize.
A 27-year-old Nonjabuliso Wendy Kunene, from Ladysmith, uMnambithi, who obtained the 3rd place from DUT, started falling in love with Mandarin back in 2015 after obtaining a scholarship from one of the Taiwanese sponsors who wanted to provide services in communities back in high school. She even managed to go to Taiwan in the very same year but had to come back to South Africa in 2016 to pursue her studies since she had to first learn Mandarin before she could enrol in Taiwan.
From Taiwan to South Africa
In 2017, Kunene volunteered at court to understand and observe what was happening as she was unfamiliar with the language. “After having to come back from Taiwan I volunteered at a court of law as an interpreter and in 2018 after realising that my life was stuck and I could not be hired, I had to apply to enrol at DUT and that is where I started to participate in the Mandarin competition,” said Kunene. Kunene is currently a final-year Language Practice student at Durban University of Technology, and a tutor at her institution.
Journey to the competition
Kunene entered the competition for the first time in 2018 when it was hosted in Port Elizabeth, where she got the 2nd position. The competition usually has two 2nd-prize winners who will usually get an opportunity to watch the competition that is held in China for 1st position winners from all over the universe since it is an international competition.So, Kunene also went on a two-months trip to observe the competition in China, “The trip would be what I can call a vacation because we were touring around China and then came back,” said Kunene.
Upon return from China in 2018 she got a job at the Confucius Institute, where she worked as an interpreter for the Chinese nationals from a company called CRRC Locomotives, that were employed by Transnet to build locomotives in Durban and help South Africans improve their skills in the railway industry.
During COVID-19, Kunene lost her job as an interpreter because the Chinese nationals had to go back to their country. “ In 2020, something said Wendy you need to apply for going back to school, that’s when I applied through the Central Application Office (CAO),” added Kunene. She did that after seeing that the money she was earning at the Confucius Institute was insufficient.
Kunene indicated that learning Mandarin had opened doors for her prior to the outbreak of COVID-19, as the DUT Confucius Institute managed to find her a job as a Mandarin interpreter in one of the Chinese companies that were partnering with Transnet. Kunene said that COVID-19 led to her enrolling for her Diploma in Language Practice at DUT in 2021. Currently, her focus is on completing her studies but she revealed that there are many job opportunities for people who can speak Mandarin. Her aspiration is to obtain a master’s degree in Mandarin and she is confident that it will open more doors of opportunity for her in the future.
According to Mr Frank Lin Wu, Co-Dean of the DUT Confucius Institute, this was the first physical Chinese Bridge competition since the COVID-19 global pandemic and the subsequent lockdown.
Despite the challenges that Kunene went through in the competition, she specified that she was willing to give it a try once again in the next year or two, though she had to jingle between her academics, the competition, and personal issues but is willing to give it a try.
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