More Russian cultural centers to open in Africa
More than ten new Russian language and culture centers, or ‘Russian Houses’, are set to be launched in Africa, the Rossotrudnichestvo outreach and cultural support agency announced on Thursday.
The plans include the opening of a Russian cultural center in Angola, Rossotrudnichestvo head Evgeny Primakov revealed at a press conference.
“We have about 20 applications pending, most of them in Africa,” Primakov added.
According to the agency, a major aim of the project is to hold regular cultural and humanitarian activities in countries where Rossotrudnichestvo does not yet have a presence.
Non-state ‘Russian Houses’ have the status of a Rossotrudnichestvo partner and operate in scientific, educational, cultural, economic, information and other humanitarian fields.
The number of scholarships for foreign students who plan to study at Russian universities is directly linked to the popularity of the Russian language and preparatory classes, according to recent reports.
The 2023-24 academic year saw the number of Russian scholarships for African students increase from 2,300 to 4,700, and the average competition was around five people per place, Rossotrudnichestvo reported last year.
Most of the scholarships went to students in Guinea, Angola, Mali, the Republic of the Congo, Egypt, and Nigeria.
State Russian Houses or Centers of Russian Culture and Science run by Rossotrudnichestvo already operate in Tunisia, Morocco, Egypt, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Zambia, South Africa, the Republic of the Congo, and Sierra Leone. They complement Moscow’s diplomatic efforts with a broad spectrum of cultural and educational activities.
