Worldway Lisbon News: The governments of Portugal and China have discussed the establishment of Chinese language courses in Portugal. It is expected that in September of this year, Chinese language courses will become a compulsory subject for students majoring in humanities in high schools in Portugal, and will also be offered as an elective course for students in the 10th grade and above.
Last week, Nuno Crato, the Minister of Education and Science of Portugal, attended the inauguration ceremony of the Confucius Institute at the University of Aveiro, which is the third Confucius Institute following those in Minho and Lisbon. It is reported that by September of this year, nearly 20 Chinese language classes will be established in public and private schools in Portugal, with a total of up to 500 students.
In addition, Teresa Cid, the head of the Confucius Institute at the University of Lisbon, confirmed that with the support of the National Hanban, the Portuguese government is drafting a new pilot project to establish Chinese language courses in several high schools across Portugal. It is initially expected that Chinese language classes will be set up in 20 schools, with an average of one class per school.
The enhancement of Chinese language courses reflects the further strengthening of economic and cultural ties between China and Portugal. Earlier, Cai Wenxian, the chairman of the Portuguese Chinese Chamber of Commerce and executive director of the Portugal Aidu Group, stated at the celebration of the "Portugal Economic Exploration Network" held on April 21 that in 2014, Portugal became China's fourth largest investment destination in Europe, with Chinese investments in Portugal exceeding 9 billion euros. Portugal has become a favored country for Chinese investors seeking immigration investment.
Surveys show that the scale of Chinese investment in Portugal has now reached 10 billion USD (approximately 9.3 billion euros), with investment projects including the purchase of real estate in Portugal and large corporate acquisition projects such as EDP, REN, Fidelidade Insurance, and Espírito Santo Investment Bank, as well as the acquisition of a 30% stake in the GP Energy Group in Brazil. These figures far exceed the previous estimate of 6 billion euros by Miguel Athayde Marques, the head of the Portugal Economic Exploration website.
Jorge Torres Pereira, the Portuguese Ambassador to China, stated: "In recent years, Portugal has become one of the main investment destination countries for China in Europe. Since 2012, when China Three Gorges Corporation purchased 21.3% of EDP in Portugal, investments from China have exceeded 10 billion euros." The Portuguese Ambassador to China believes: "The Portuguese economy has passed the 'difficult times' and has entered a new growth cycle, while Portugal's economy is also highly competitive among European countries." In the future, Portugal will be able to provide more investment opportunities for Chinese investors.
【Portugal Property Investment Immigration】
As the first immigration agency in China to introduce the "Portugal Golden Residence" property investment immigration program, Worldway is the only Chinese immigration agency with an independent branch in Portugal. It has successfully assisted hundreds of Chinese investors in completing their investments in Portugal and obtaining Golden Residence Cards. Its branch in Portugal is located on the bustling Avenida da Liberdade in downtown Lisbon, making it the preferred legal immigration agency for investment immigrants.
