Windhoek — A wide variety of foreign and local students recently completed language courses at the Unam Language Centre. The students, from such diverse countries as Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Mozambique, People's Republic of China and Korea, successfully completed language courses in Afrikaans, German, Portuguese, Chinese, French, Oshikwanyama and English.

These newly acquired language skills, according to Unam's Vice Chancellor Prof Lazarus Hangula, will empower the successful candidates to be able to study, communicate and interact in a world that is acceleratedly becoming a real global village.

Speaking at the certificate awards ceremony this week, Prof Hangula said: "I am delighted because as a university, through our Language Centre, we have evolved to respond effectively to the language needs of Namibia as a nation as well as the international community at large."

With reference to the importance of language, Hangula said it unlocked doors and lifted the veil to allow the interested person to see the wide and kaleidoscopic world of world views, artistic, emotional and idiomatic expressions as well as other cultural idiosyncrasies through the window of opportunities it creates.

"Those of you who have equipped yourselves with the language skills should consider yourselves richer and more empowered as you can now read something where some of us do not even see anything meaningful, and you can now serve as our interpreters. I consider a language as being always an advantage to whoever can understand it - even if it is only the specialised form of language as, for example, used by economists, engineers, medical personnel, etc.," Hangula said.

He congratulated the candidates for their achievement which makes Namibia a true member of the global village. Hangula announced that several partners had made the language training possible. The Chinese Embassy, he said, had availed two Chinese professors, free of charge, who are currently teaching Chinese to Unam students at both the Windhoek and Northern campuses. Other partners include the Namibian National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Office of the President and the Namibian Defence Force.

The Language Centre has taught French to a number of Namibian soldiers who will shortly be carrying out their operations in the politically and militarily troubled regions of Africa.

He thanked the centre for its efforts and said the existence of languages was threatened by the fast advancement of globalisation.

"Namibia and Africa as a whole cannot enter development without its languages and culture," Hangula said.