An Irish education official said recently that Chinese will be added to the list of languages covered under the country’s national exams by 2020 and it will be included as a subject in the college entrance exam in 2022, Xinhua News Agency reported.

　　据新华社报道，一名爱尔兰教育官员近日表示，到2020年，汉语将被列入国家考试范围内的语言名单，2022年起大学录取考试将正式开考汉语科目。

　　Mary Mitchell O’Connor, Ireland’s minister of higher education, said the list is based on a program launched in 2014, a short 100-hour course on Chinese language and culture. The education minister made the announcement at a joint conference of Confucius Institutes of Ireland and Britain.

　　爱尔兰政府负责高等教育的国务部长玛丽.米切尔.奥康纳表示，这份名单是基于2014年引入的“100学时中国语言和文化课程”项目。奥康纳是在英爱两国孔子学院联席会议上宣布的此消息。

　　O’Connor said the Irish government is fully aware of the importance of creating the opportunity to learn Chinese for its students, especially against the backdrop of economic globalization and deepening China-Ireland trade ties.

　　她说，爱尔兰政府充分意识到给本国学生提供汉语学习机会的重要性，在经济全球化和爱中两国贸易关系加深的背景下，这显得尤为重要。

　　An increasing number of Irish people have become interested in learning Chinese, and the number of Irish students coming to study in China is also expanding, O’Connor said, adding that educational cooperation between the two countries is growing well.

　　奥康纳说，爱尔兰各地喜欢学习汉语的人日益增多，选择去中国留学的学生也在不断增加。她还说，爱中两国在教育领域的合作发展良好。