Households to Be Connected by Telephone

in 2020

China is expected to link almost every households' telephones, including those in its vast rural areas, by 2020, the Ministry of Information Industry has said.

By July of 2004, 90 percent of Chinese villages had been connected by telephones, and the connection ratio will shoot up to 95 percent next year, according to latest statistics released by the ministry. China ranks No.1 in the world in its number of telephone subscribers, with 295.488 million fixed line and 305.283 million mobile users. However, the ministry said that telecom development remains seriously imbalanced between the country's coastal areas, where 77 percent households own one fixed line, and the hinterland, where only 40 percent of families have one.

(Xinhua)

Chinese Studies Available at Egypt's Top University

Egypt's top university has opened its Chinese department to meet the growing demand for learning Chinese in recent years.

The principal of Cairo University, Ali Abdel Rahman, said that the Chinese culture is one of the major sources of knowledge since ancient times, China Radio International reported on Oct. 9. He hopes that the Chinese department will cultivate younger generations to be cultural ambassadors for China and provide a window to the country from the Arabic world. So far, 26 students have been enrolled into the department.

Established in 1908, Cairo University is one of the most famous academic institutes in the Arab nations, with nearly 190,000 students.

(Xinhua)