From Sept 12 to 18, varies of Chinese cultural activities will be held in the country. The culture week is aimed at encouraging more Kiwis to try speaking Chinese in an attempt to bridge the cultural and linguistic knowledge gap between China and New Zealand.[Photo/Xinhua]

New Zealand needs much more Kiwis who are culturally capable of working in a Chinese environment, former Ambassador to China Tony Browne said on Sunday.

"New Zealand is now a country that embraces many culture traditions. We need to know the region that NZ situated, we need to know the country with which we have our largest trading partnership, and we need to know the county that sending millions of tourists to NZ in ten years time," Browne said at the launching ceremony of the New Zealand Chinese Language Week.

From Sept 12 to 18, varies of Chinese cultural activities will be held in the country. The culture week is aimed at encouraging more Kiwis to try speaking Chinese in an attempt to bridge the cultural and linguistic knowledge gap between China and New Zealand.

Jin Zhijian, the Chinese consul general to Christchurch, echoed with Browne. Jin said the key reason for the Chinese government to promote Chinese language and Chinese culture in New Zealand is to deepen people-to-people mutual understanding and to further the good relationship between the two countries.

There are more than 9,000 students who are studying Chinese in New Zealand South Island. About 200 Chinese culture activities were held in South Island in the past year, attracting thousands and thousands of participants.