中文如今在世界各国都成为人们争相学习的"外语".据法国新闻社报道,在葡萄牙的一个工业小镇,汉语普通话成为了8到9岁孩子们的必修课.

AFP: Five hundred years after the Portuguese became the first Europeans to establish sea trade with China, a town in northern Portugal is counting on its youth to secure a new foothold in the Asian giant.

The small industrial town of Sao Joao da Madeira, Portugal's shoe capital which specialises in luxury models, has now made Mandarin compulsory for its 8- and 9-year-olds.

The aim is to give their youth the competitive tool to help sell its footwear to China.And the government, battling to put six years of debilitating crisis behind, is watching the town's experiment closely to see if it can be replicated throughout the country.