Chinese martial arts gain popularity in Africa

Chinese martial arts, or kung fu, conjure up an image of the iconic movie star Bruce Lee, whose superb fighting skills were popularized throughout the world.

Over the years, Africa has witnessed the making of several Bruce Lee-wannabes with wushu, the Mandarin-language term for martial arts, which have become popular across the continent.

Students of the martial arts believe that Chinese kung fu promotes healthy living.

On the eve of the Dragon Boat Festival in 2021, with the support of the Chinese Embassy in Kenya, a martial arts tour was held in Kiambu county in Kenya with more than 60 contestants from seven clubs competing in kickboxing, ranging in age from 4 to 20.

In Kiambu, more than a dozen primary and secondary schools offer courses in Chinese martial arts, and the Confucius Institutes at Kenya's top universities, the universities of Nairobi and Kenyatta, offer martial arts classes all year round, with more than 10 martial arts clubs and many martial arts enthusiasts across the country.

Kung fu has become a popular sport in Kenya, particularly among school-age children. They find it interesting because it keeps their body in shape, and it teaches them self-defense and self-control.

Chinese martial arts teach an excellent way of life, and the sport helps people become strong, healthy, stay in good shape and develop excellent concentration.

Chinese martial arts are lifetime physical exercises and are performed with balanced movements between the legs and hands, making them preferable to other exercises.

Although many African martial arts practitioners do not have good training grounds and equipment, they create their own conditions to practice martial arts. They practice on grass fields and dirt roads. They take used tires as sandbags, and make sticks by themselves.

Chinese martial arts are also winning the hearts and souls of the Rwandan youth.

According to Rukundo, the Confucius Institute at the University of Rwanda and the Chinese Embassy in Rwanda have supported the academy through organizing kung fu competitions, which have motivated young Rwandans to learn kung fu.

"The government of Tanzania is giving much support to Chinese martial arts which are attracting tens of thousands of Tanzanians, especially the youth," said John Mapepele, a senior communications officer with the Tanzanian Ministry of Culture, Arts and Sports, at the inaugural Tanzania women sports festival dubbed Tanzanite in September, where kung fu was featured by young Tanzanian girls aged 10 to 14.

"Tens of hundreds of visitors come here to watch the girls showing their prowess in kung fu," said Athuman Begeja, a 31-year-old kung fu teacher at Begeja Wushu Club located in Ilala district in Dar es Salaam.

The kung fu frenzy is sweeping the continent thanks to the friendly relations between China and Africa, cemented through the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and the Belt and Road Initiative, among others.

Humphrey Moshi, a professor of economics at state-run University of Dar es Salaam and director of the Center for Chinese Studies in Tanzania, said that the relationship between China and Africa has become stronger since the establishment of the forum.

"We have seen tangible improvement in sectors ranging from agriculture and communications, construction, manufacturing, culture, sports and games, and people to people exchanges," said Moshi.

The number of kung fu clubs in Rwanda organized under the Rwanda Kung Fu Wushu Federation has been growing in recent years, and the total stands at 31 this year, with over 2,000 registered members.

Also, according to a recent report by the Ethiopian Martial Arts Federation, there are over 800 martial arts training centers across Ethiopia, Africa's second-most populous nation.

Among them, 60 are found in Addis Ababa and each offers martial arts training for about 70 students each season, and a wushu club exists in every small town in Ethiopia, the report indicated.