Chinese Association for International Understanding

In October 2015, CAFIU and Sri Lanka-China Friendship Association jointly held the “Human Development Inspired through the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road Project” Young Students Speech Contest, which attracted extensive attention from Chinese and Sri Lankan media. The press conference before the final round was attended by over 20 media representatives. Xinhua News Agency, People’s Daily, China Youth Daily, Sri Lankan media Daily News, Island Newspaper and Sinhalese and Tamil media run special reports covering the contest. The webpages of People’s Daily, Xinhua News Agency and China Youth Online also reprinted these reports.

The media outlets run vivid reports on the contest. According to Xinhua News Agency, Sri Lankan media Daily News and Island Newspaper, the speech contest was held across the whole nation and the final round was graced by Jayasuriya, Speaker of the Sri Lankan Parliament, Vice-Chairman Zhang Baowen of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China, and Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Yi Xianliang, who presented awards to the winners. Xinhua News Agency told the story of the top winner in English group. Coming from a school in the remote area of Uva Province, she worked together with three others to get access to information concerning the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road through the Internet. In the contest, she spoke from the economic aspect, explaining how Sri Lanka’s participation in the building of the 21st-Century Silk Road will benefit the country’s social and economic development. She won a big round of applause.
　　
The media also spoke highly of the significance of the contest. According to Sri Lankan media Daily News and Island Newspaper, the contest had significant influence across the country, enabling ordinary people, young students in particular, to have a better understanding of China’s “Belt and Road” Initiative and facilitating the cultural exchanges between the two nations. The participation of a large number of students from the Northern and Eastern Provinces was an encouraging indication that underscored the importance of the positive reconciliation process to bridge the gulf between communities and cross geographic divides. Nine winners will be awarded a comprehensive study tour in China spanning 7 days in April 2016. The xinhuanet.com highlighted the significance of the contest by quoting the top winner in English group as saying “The contest enabled me to have an in-depth understanding of the Belt and Road Initiative and become more interested in Sri Lanka-China relations and cooperation”.