> Korean language and culture taught to a 97-year-old Korean man in Uzbekistan
> Plans to organize diverse classes, including Korean singing lessons

KSI’s Korean language course was opened at the Arirang Nursing Home, a welfare facility for elderly Korean residents in Uzbekistan. As part of an agreement with the Korea Foundation for International Healthcare (KOFIH), KSI Tashkent 1 provided Korean language and culture education to elderly Korean-Uzbekistanis.

The Arirang Nursing Home, established in 2010, is a welfare facility that supports elderly Koreans living alone. The Uzbek government donated the land and buildings to the Association of Korean Cultures in Uzbekistan for cooperation between Korea and Uzbekistan, which are operated by KOFIH under the Ministry of Health and Welfare of the Republic of Korea. Currently, 39 elderly Koreans without dependents (average age 84.4 years, oldest 97 years) reside here.

A professional Korean language teacher from KSIF visits the Arirang Nursing Home every week. The classes, which began in late February, will continue until the end of December this year. Korean language classes for the elderly of Korean-Uzbekistanis focus on Hangeul and basic Korean expressions. "Even the elderly, who cannot see well, always sit in the front and write the words they hear with their fingers on the desk, asking, 'Is this right?" said Kim Yeon-woong, who taught the first semester. "I feel very rewarded and responsible since it is an educational project that reminds us of the language of a people who have not forgotten it after so many years.”

KSI Tashkent 1 plans to continue promoting Korean language and culture education for elderly Koreans at the Arirang Nursing Home in line with the King Sejong Institute Foundation's management policy of practicing ESG through overseas Korean language education.

Korean elders learning Korean from a teacher at KSI Tashkent 1.