With increasing Sino-Kenya exchanges at various levels, students in Kenya are not only improving their chances to further their education in China by learning the language, they are also developing new cross-cultural talents through activities like Chinese music competitions.

At the 8th Kenya Good Voice Chinese Singing Competition held in Kenya's capital Nairobi on Thursday, teachers and students said learning the language and cultural aspects between different people promotes a deeper understanding and cooperation.

According to Salome Nyambura, the director of the Confucius Institute at Kenyatta University, cultural activities like music and dance are avenues through which people get to learn about each other's world view and that is why they encourage students to develop these talents.

"We have been hosting many events to promote Chinese culture to young learners. The majority of them find Chinese music, language and folklore interesting and the number of participants has been growing every year," Nyambura said.

During the event, there was stiff competition among the 16 contestants who brought out their best to prove to the judges that they had what it takes to take home the winner's trophy. After careful deliberations backed by a vote from the audience, the judges settled on John Mark Shibevo as the overall winner.

Shibevo, who will get a chance to represent Kenya at the Chengdu Music Festival in Chengdu, China later in the year, said that he is glad to be studying the Chinese language because currently, most African countries are doing a lot of business with China and most products coming to our country come from there.

"More African youth are studying Chinese in the hope the language will open up new opportunities. I personally like singing and after I started learning the Chinese language, I realized that they have more to offer through their culture and that is why I appreciate the competition as a good way to allow more people to enjoy the good voices of Kenya and the good voices of China-Kenya friendship and cooperation," Shibevo said.

The contestants, who performed songs covering diverse themes like patriotism, romance and harmonious coexistence, demonstrated a high degree of proficiency in vocals, rhythm and tone. Judges noted that this year's Chinese singing competition had improved remarkably in all aspects.

"The contestants demonstrated a remarkable degree of confidence and ability to connect with the audience. Their vocals were refined, and their stage presence was captivating too," Elijan Adongo, one of the judges in the competition said.