Chinese Embassy hosts ‘Talking with Taikonauts’ an...

Chinese Embassy hosts ‘Talking with Taikonauts’ and painting competition awards ceremony

Patience Muchemwa

The Chinese Embassy yesterday hosted a gathering of “Talking with Taikonauts” and awarding ceremony of “My Dream Painting” competition for African youths.

Zimbabwe is one of the many African countries which participated in the competition, which started in March 2023.

Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Zhou Ding emphasised the importance of the Zimbabwe-China friendship. “It is a great pleasure to host today’s ‘Talking with Taikonauts’ event and the Awarding Ceremony of the ‘My Dream’ Painting Competition for African Youths here in Harare. Welcome to the Chinese Embassy.

“As you all know, our embassy serves as a bridge between our two countries and two peoples in promoting friendship, cooperation and our shared interests. It is always a pleasure to have our Zimbabwean friends here at our embassy. Please, feel at home and enjoy your stay,” he said.

Acting Director-General of the Zimbabwe National Geospatial and Space Agency, Painos Gweme thanked the Chinese Embassy for hosting the event.

“Allow me therefore to thank the Secretariat of the Chinese Follow-up Committee of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and the China Manned Space Engineering Office for organising and co-hosting the painting competition.

“Over the years, Zimbabwean youth like other African youths at large, have expressed strong interest in the outer space and their desire to ‘fly to space’ someday in the future. The Government of Zimbabwe, through ZINGSA, is ready to actively support the activities that enable the youths to explore the universe,” he added.

Ambassador Ding said: “The Secretariat of the Chinese Follow-up Committee of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, the China Manned Space Engineering Office and the Chinese Embassies and Consulates in Africa co-organised the ‘My Dream’ Painting Competition for African Youth, which attracted more than 2 000 teenage authors in Africa to participate. 10 paintings, including Zimbabwean girl Hope Mafiko’s work ‘One of the Best Interior Architects in Africa’ have won the First Prize ‘Tian He’ Award and got the opportunity to be brought into space by China’s Shenzhou-16 manned spacecraft.”

The first prize winner, Hope Mafiko, is in China.

“Mafiko’s work is well-designed with very distinctive art style. In her painting, two African girls look up to the starry sky, which vividly depicts our mankind’s yearning for the mystical universe,” said Ambassador Ding.

“Other Zimbabwean youth painters also performed very well in the competition. Asa King, who is here with us today, won the Third Prize ‘Meng Tian’ Award for his work All Africans are United and Working Together,” he added.

Seven other participants; Darren Samuel Abraham, Tiller Tatenda Maringa, Noor Qamar Shahzad, Zahrah Abdoola, Izwirashe Blessing Masvodza, Nicole Lebogang Njanjari and Jada Boyd, have also received Awards for their excellent works.