Nigeria Establishes More ‘Chinese Corner’ as Mandarin Added to Senior Secondary Curriculum

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has expanded its cultural and educational partnership with China as Mandarin has officially been included among the foreign languages to be taught in Senior Secondary Schools across the country.

The announcement was made on Tuesday by the FCT Education Secretary, Dr Danlami Hayyo, during the inauguration of a new Chinese Corner at Government Secondary School, Tudun Wada, Abuja. The project was sponsored by China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC), Nigeria’s largest Chinese construction firm, as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility.

Hayyo commended the foresight of the FCT Education Board for introducing Mandarin into schools even before the national curriculum review. He noted that the language, spoken by the most significant number of people globally, has become a vital tool in commerce, education, and tourism.

May I inform you that in the recent review of our curriculum, the Chinese language has been selected as one of the international languages to offer in Senior Secondary Schools. That is to say that, the FCT has been very visionary in introducing the subject in our schools through the Chinese Corners early enough. Chinese Mandarin has the largest number of speakers in the world and today it has become the language of commerce, education and tourism,” he noted.

With the commissioning of the Tudun Wada centre, the number of Chinese Corners in Abuja now stands at 14. These centres, established in secondary schools across the capital, provide a platform for cultural exchange, language learning, and opportunities for Nigerian students to pursue further studies in China.

According to Hayyo, the collaboration has also benefited teachers and staff, many of whom have undergone capacity-building programmes in China. He stressed that the FCT remains the only part of the federation with Chinese Corners in its schools. Speaking on behalf of the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, Hayyo expressed appreciation to the Chinese government and its embassy for fostering people-to-people connections.

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Chinese Counsellor, Mr Yang Jianxing, explained that the idea of the Chinese Corner was conceived over a decade ago to strengthen Nigeria-China cultural relations. “Over the past 10 years, this seemingly simple platform has become a link connecting Chinese and Nigerian cultures, and one of the most popular cultural check-in spots among teachers and students in Abuja,” Jianxing said.

He emphasised that the inauguration of the new centre was not an end, but a fresh beginning for deeper cultural and educational exchanges between both countries.

In his welcome address, the Director and Secretary of the FCT Secondary Education Board, Dr Muhammed Ladan, described the initiative as a strong testimonial of Nigeria-China bilateral ties. He noted that the Chinese Corners not only foster language learning but also open opportunities for scholarships, artistic collaborations, and stronger diplomatic engagement.

The FCT-SEB launched the first Chinese Corner in 2013 at Government Secondary School, Garki. By 2014, 11 more were established, with additional centres added in subsequent years, bringing the current total to 14. Two more centres are expected to be unveiled later this year with support from Chinese companies in Nigeria.

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