Kiswahili is the national or official language of Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as well as being one of the official languages of the East African Community and African Union. It is a language of influence politically, economically and socially, and knowledge of it can deepen business relationships and social interactions. East Africa has a growing economy with abundant natural resources like huge tourism potential,
Oil and Gas, so if you are looking at investing in East Africa, as well as living in Africa, the answer is that you must learn this unifying language of East Africa spoken by well over 100 million people in the world.
Unlike any other African language, Swahili has developed into a very popular African language, taught in many leading academic institutions in Africa, Europe, America and Asia. It is offered as a subject of study in prestigious universities like Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Princeton, the University of Pennsylvania and many others. It is estimated that close to a hundred institutions teach Swahili in the U.S. alone. Swahili has been taught at the University of London since the 1930s. It is also taught in Canada, Germany, Poland, Mexico, Russia, Japan, India, and many other countries. Good Reasons to Learn Swahili - East Africa’s Lingua Franca ? Swahili plays an important part in education in several African countries. Uganda made Swahili a required subject in primary schools in 1992. It is also a compulsory subject in Kenyan schools and a distinct academic discipline in many public and private universities. With the next generation of leaders, as well as consumers all speaking Swahili, ignoring it would be short sighted. ? Swahili will become a language associated with IT and technology and, as a result, arts and culture. As investment continues in IT infrastructure, mobile telephony and other online solutions in countries such as Kenya, the economy will grow. When an economy grows so do people’s spending power, their exposure to information and their inventiveness and creativity. The result will be a flourishing tech-culture scene expressed through Swahili. “Swahilihood” is a term already starting to make appearances online with Google giving Swahili (Kiswahili) option language choice on its menu. ? Knowledge of Swahili will enhance the credibility of researchers interested in Africa. Areas such as big data, social media and digital information are growing and to gain critical insight into Africa’s evolving markets, having an understanding of Swahili will be very important. Target population ? This course has been designed for any person wishing to achieve a quick working general knowledge of the language, especially expatriates, volunteers, missionaries, exchange programme students, researchers, diplomats etc. ? It is very useful if you live or wish to live in East Africa and will need to communicate with a variety of people across national and ethnic lines. ? It is aimed at learners with a general interest in Kiswahili. No prior knowledge of the language is required for those wishing to pursue Kiswahili Beginners’ Level course. Learning resources ? Your teacher will supply necessary and relevant learning materials, both tailor-made and taken from other sources (textbooks, newspapers, internet etc.) to supplement the subject matter. ? Notes will be shared to enable learners’ have self-study and revision at their own time and pace. There will be a variety of text materials available for learners to use throughout their study period. Participation Participation includes: ? Regular online attendance through Skype/Zoom/Telegram etc. ? Prompt completion of all reading/assignments and assessment. ? It is estimated that within 4-6 months period, the contents of this Programme will be mastered, notwithstanding learner’s availability and speed of appreciating a new language. ? A concentrated study of at least 4 hours per week is recommended. Learning Outcome By the end of this course the learner will: ? Be able to communicate in very basic everyday life situations, including but not limited to greetings, daily activities, finding one’s way, telling time and date, making simple purchases and related transactions, ordering and paying for meals etc. ? Be able to understand very simple oral and written texts and ascertain specific information on simple topics. ? Have approximately one thousand words introduced throughout the course, which is considered adequate for general working topics. Course Delivery ? A communicative approach will be used. All four skills (speaking, reading, listening & writing) will be practiced. ? Enough interaction will be accorded to ensure complete comprehension of the course. ? Virtual lessons will be conducted according to agreed schedules. ? Students will also be offered guidance in self-study and set learning practice tasks. ? The study (tuition) timetable is tailor-made to suit student’s availability. Timings and days are negotiated prior to course commencement.
