The Confucius Institute at the University of Banja Luka is an education centre established in December 2017 with the aim to promote the Chinese language and culture. The Chinese language and culture are taught by native Chinese speakers and professors of the Chinese language. It is located on the first floor of the Faculty of Political Science, on the University Campus.

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The Institute provides the Chinese language and culture сourses for pre-school, primary and secondary school children, students and professors, and everyone else interested in studying the Chinese language and learning more about its culture and customs. Upon completing the programme, they are awarded the certificates on successful completion of the three-month Chinese language course, and they may take the HSK Test (a standardised test of the Chinese language proficiency for non-native Chinese speakers) and the YCT (a test for primary school students) at the Confucius Institute, which is also a Test Centre of this internationally recognised examination. In the library of the Faculty of Political Science, the Confucius Institute has over 2,000 books in Chinese and English on China and Chinese culture, which may help the students and citizens learn more about this country and its culture as well as about its social and economic trends. The Institute has also participated in the publication of several books and translations of literary works, such as The Beijing Opera by Prof. Ljiljana Stević, PhD, The Heralds of the First Knowledge on China in Serbia by the Serbian Professor of the Chinese Language Selena Pjević, the collection of poems Two by Banja Luka poets Stevka Kozić Preradović and Ranko Preradović, the translation of Petar Kočić's Mrguda into Chinese and Esperanto, as a result of the cooperation between the Confucius Institute, the International Association of Scientists, the City Esperanto Association La Mondo Banja Luka and Tianjin Esperanto Association, as well as the Chinese translation of selected short stories by Petar Kočić in the form of a comic book entitled The Comics by the Motifs of Petar Kočić, in cooperation with the Association of Comic Authors and Comic Fans of the Republic of Srpska Ninth Dimension Banja Luka.

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The Confucius Institute organises the Chinese language courses in autumn and spring that last three months per season. Depending on their level of knowledge, the students are grouped into HSK 1, HSK 2, HSK 3, HSK 4, and HSK 5. Over the six years of its existence, the Confucius Institute has organised many language and culture courses and workshops, which were attended by more than 500 students and citizens, some of whom had the opportunity to visit China and improve their knowledge. Many Chinese language students have the opportunity to go to a ten-day summer camp and study the language, visit the cities of Beijing and Tianjin and some of the most important cultural and historical sites in the People's Republic of China.  

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The Institute also organises free elective Chinese language courses for over 200 primary and secondary school students. On 5 October 2020, a Confucius Classroom was opened at Banja Luka Grammar School and it was the first modernly equipped classroom for the study of the Chinese language and culture. Through classes and different activities and projects, the  students and professors of this school may learn and improve their knowledge of the Chinese language as well as learn more about the Chinese culture. Banja Luka Grammar School is one of the few secondary schools in the region that got approval to open a Confucius Classroom in such a short period of time, which is a great success for the Confucius Institute, the school and the City of Banja Luka alike.

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Every year, students may take free one-month Chinese language courses during January (winter intensive course) and July or August (summer intensive course), in which they can improve their knowledge and better prepare for the next regular course. For a year, the Confucius Institute has also held the new Business Chinese Course, intended for those who wish to learn the basics of business correspondence in Chinese and the Chinese business culture and etiquette. This year, it also started providing online Chinese language courses for all those who live in remote places or those who prefer to attend the classes from their homes.

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Furthermore, the students attending the Chinese language courses at the Confucius Institute participate in the Chinese Bridge Chinese Proficiency Contests, which are held every year for university, secondary and primary school students. They achieve great results, often win the contests, and get the opportunity to represent their country in China.

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Supporting and encouraging children and young adults to learn Chinese is the most important contribution of the Confucius Institute. In addition to its activities in promoting the Chinese language, the Institute has also been promoting the Chinese culture and art by organising various public events, such as the exhibition of paintings and calligraphy works by the academic painters and professors of the Xi'an Academy of Fine Arts from the People's Republic of China, the photo exhibition "Tea, Love and the World", photographs of which have been chosen by a special jury from China and shown all over the world, in cooperation with the International Association of Scientists, as well as the exhibition of the Dehua porcelain from China in Banja Luka. What the Confucius Institute is particularly proud of, though, is the art competition for primary and secondary school students, which is organised every year in honour of the Chinese New Year. The many drawings these students submit year after year confirm the success of this initiative.

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Over the years, the Confucius Institute has established cooperation with many institutions in the Republic of Srpska. Hence, it supported the Museum of the Republic of Srpska and its Archaeological Film Review, Mali Princ Youth Organisation and Poliglota Institute in Brčko in their organising of various educational workshops for the general public, and Dr Miroslav Zotović Institute for Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation by providing Tai Chi training for its physiotherapists, which they could continue to practise with their patients. Every June, the Confucius Institute celebrates World Music Day with the Academy of Arts of the University of Banja Luka, presenting the traditional Chinese music and musical instruments to the general public. Moreover, it often organises concerts dedicated to the Lunar New Year or other significant events.

At workshops and public events, where the Confucius Institute presents different Chinese cultural elements to the general public, citizens are mostly interested in the Chinese tea ceremony, which is a part of the Chinese tradition and a philosophy that exudes harmony, peace, and gratitude. The older population is predominantly interested in the Tai Chi classes, which are regularly conducted by the Confucius Institute, because of the many benefits they have on physical and mental health. More to this, the Confucius Institute has shared the traditional Chinese medicine with a wider population through several lectures given by outstanding experts. The youngsters find various educational and cultural workshops interesting, such as the workshops on Chinese Calligraphy, Traditional Chinese Painting, Paper Cutting Art, Table Tennis, Chinese Chess, Kung Fu Martial Arts etc. Citizens may also learn more about the culture, tradition, social and economic trends in China at the lectures the Confucius Institute regularly organises.

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No less significant is the Confucius Institute’s contribution to the networking between the home academic and state institutions and the institutions in the People's Republic of China (in economics, culture, education, tourism etc.). Thus, already in the first year of establishment, in September 2018, the Institute helped the Republic of Srpska Government delegation visit Tianjin University of Technology and Education, where they presented the Saint Stephen plaque to the rector of the University as a sign of gratitude for her contribution to the promotion of bilateral educational and cultural cooperation. That same year, the representatives of the City of Banja Luka and the then mayor visited Tianjin University of Technology and Education, on which occasion he expressed his satisfaction with the work and achievements of the Confucius Institute at the University of Banja Luka. With the support and help of the Confucius Institute, the representatives of the Department of Culture, Tourism and Social Policy were also invited the following year to China to promote the tourism programme of Banja Luka at the China Tourism Industries Exposition.

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With the assistance of the Confucius Institute, different delegations of the University of Banja Luka visit China and its higher education institutions every year.

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Furthermore, the Institute has assisted in establishing the Sinology Study Programme at the Faculty of Philology of the University of Banja Luka. Over the several years of its existence, it has announced several scholarships for university students to study at universities in China. The Confucius Institute has eight employees: one home director, one Chinese director, two senior associates, and four Chinese language and culture professors.

Ljiljana Stević, Home Director, has led the Institute since its establishment. Ying Cai (2017-2019) and Shen Li (2020-2022) were the Chinese Directors, and Luo Xiaoru currently performs this function.

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The vision of the Confucius Institute is to become a relevant source of knowledge on China in the Republic of Srpska. In addition to promoting the Chinese language and culture, i.e., presenting the Chinese language and culture to professionals and the general public, the Confucius Institute aims to advance the cooperation in the field of education between China and the Republic of Srpska and provide assistance in establishing cooperation between different institutions of the Republic of Srpska and the institutions of the People’s Republic of China. The Institute organises the Chinese language courses in primary and secondary schools as well as in higher education institutions and educates and informs the business society of the Republic of Srpska on how to do business with China, helping them master everything necessary to make their business with China and other Asian countries as successful as possible. By regularly organising educational workshops that promote the cultural values of the Chinese people, the Institute strives to enable the citizens to take an active part in the workshops and thus better understand and learn more about the different aspects of the Chinese culture.