A total of nearly 50,000 local government officials are expected to improve their grasp of Mandarin and English in a bid to upgrade their language skills to match Shanghai's status as a fast-developing international metropolis.

So far about 8,000 officials have passed a special Mandarin test, conducted by Shanghai Mandarin Test Centre (SMTC), after receiving intensive training, according to Zhang Ripei, an official of the Shanghai Education Commission.

Aiming to reflect the involved parties' overall capacity in using Mandarin, the test comprises several parts focusing on pronunciation, vocabulary and comrehensive use of Mandarin.

Such a test can be rather trying for many officials who are accustomed to using the Shanghai dialect, a typical South China patois largely different from Mandarin.

Zhang reported that nearly 20 per cent of the testees so far have flunked the exam because of their age, the local dialect's strong influence, educational disparity and language environment. Such officials are supposed to undergo further training until they can pass the test.

Shanghai requires government officials under age 35 to score at least 80 on the test, 10 points higher than the level demanded by the government. According to the city's plan, a Mandarin test certificate will be a professional necessity for local officials beginning in 2004.

"The test is just a motivator. The key point is for local officials to raise their awareness of Mandarin on their own initiative and out of habit in their work," Zhang said.

Traffic police and teachers are also required to use Mandarin in their work instead of the local dialect.

Meanwhile, a better grasp of English has become another target of many officials.

Following training in 300 basic English sentences for daily communication, about 11,000 officials from government bodies like the finance, taxation and public security bureaux have taken a special English test organized by the Shanghai Foreign Language Testing Service (SFLTS), among whom 80 per cent have acquired the qualification certificate.

"We don't merely focus on the test that centres around the usage of those 300 sentences," said Wang Meiqin, an executive with SFLTS. "Rather we aim at spurring those officials' interest in order to create a public atmosphere for learning English."

"Easy use of English not only gives the officials a sense of achievement, but also reflects well on the overall image of Shanghai," she added.

(China Daily, August 19, 2002)