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네이버 공유 카카오 공유 트위터 공유 페이스북 공유

Seeking to Activate Korea-Tajikistan Academic Exchange Efforts to Enhance Korean Language Education in Tajikistan

Makhmaisuf Imomov, the current Rector of Russian-Tajik Slavonic University, had been instrumental in establishing the first-ever Korean Language Course in Tajikistan at Tajik State National University of Humanities, while serving as the dean of its School of Humanities. After long hoping for a chance to see Korea, Rector Imomov’s patience has been rewarded with a recent visit (March 7-13), during which time he eagerly pursued the implementation of academic exchange between Korea and Tajikistan, especially in regard to Korean language education.

1. Awareness of Korea
I became aware of Korea through my educational pursuits. This was during the time of the former Soviet Union, when education was a high priority. I studied much about history and geography, and learned many things about Korea. In Tajikistan, there are a large number of ethnic Koreans who have remained after being forcibly relocated here by the Russian authorities. The Koreans that I know, and maintain close relations with, are all so diligent. Therefore, I have always thought that this must also be true of the people in Korea. Over the years, I have had the opportunity to experience various aspects of Korean culture, along with observing inter-Korean developments. I have been pleased to see Korea’s remarkable development, in terms of its technology and economy. Due to my keen interest in Korea, I studied extensively about contemporary Korea as well as its longtime traditions.

2. First Korean Language Course
I think what should be undertaken prior to technological or economic exchange between countries, in full scale, is the exchange of human resources. For this, we need to have capable translators and those who know the language and culture of other countries very well. Due to my personal interest in Korea, I came to study the Korean language because I hoped to promote active economic and technological exchange between Tajikistan and Korea. Later, this interest led to the opening of the Korean Language Course at Tajik State National University. Thanks to the establishment of this Course, the Tajik people developed a greatly increased interest in Korea, and ever more people wanted to learn Korean. In 2002, we opened the Center for Korean Language and Culture, which offered a short-term course on Korean. However, it is most regrettable that Tajik State National University failed to operate its Korean language course last year because of a lack of qualified faculty instructors and other difficulties. This is indeed unfortunate because the Korean language course played a vital bridge role to introduce not only the language but also the culture of Korea.

3. Russian-Tajik Slavonic University
Russian-Tajik Slavonic University is the leading university in Tajikistan, where the educational systems of Russia and Tajikistan are combined. It is funded by the two countries, and students receive diplomas from the two countries. Russian-Tajik Slavonic University was established to educate economic specialists in Tajikistan, and for the education of Russians, ethnic Koreans, and CIS nationals who have settled in Tajikistan, following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Accordingly, our students are from a diversity of religious and ethnic backgrounds. Our graduates can be seen working at embassies, international organizations, and various large businesses. Exchange with universities abroad is encouraged and supported by the government authorities. We have signed MOUs and now implement student/faculty exchange programs with neighboring countries, such as Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Russia, as well as other countries like China, Japan, and Egypt. Russian-Tajik Slavonic University has a brief history of only 13 years, but it maintains a forward-looking attitude and vision.

4. Korea-Tajikistan Exchange
When my long-awaited visit to Korea was arranged, I asked the Korean Ambassador in Tajikistan to make arrangements so that I could meet with the presidents of Korean universities. Although I closely followed the status of education in Korea through media reports, I wanted to see and experience the Korean educational system in person. The goal of my visit was very clear. I hoped to sign MOUs with my Korean counterparts to enable the students and faculty of our two countries to engage in language and cultural exchange. I am confident that this kind of effort will serve as an opportunity to activate educational exchange with Korea and other Asian countries. Russian-Tajik Slavonic University has not established a Korean language department at this time, but I would hope to invite a professor from Korea to help boost academic exchange in the near future. The education of human resources through language programs will contribute much to the advancement of our bilateral relations.

5. First Steps
Based on my keen interest in Korea, I had high expectations of this visit and wanted to do many things. Russian-Tajik Slavonic University is also very much interested in developing the field of sports, and we have many students who are highly skilled in soccer and Taekwondo. So, I hope we can implement a variety of sports exchanges as well. Finally, I personally hope to see direct flights between Korea and Tajikistan someday soon. People in Korea will certainly enjoy a visit to Tajikistan because our country has a long history, like Korea, and we also share many similarities in culture.

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