Problematising China’s soft power: setbacks of Confucius Institutes and the decentralisation of its international language and culture promotion strategy

Abstract

The Confucius Institute (CI), as China’s flagship soft power initiative, experienced rapid development in its early years, reaching 500 centres worldwide in just over a decade. However, the past few years have seen a wave of CI closures, especially in the US, where more than 100 CIs have been closed, problematising China’s soft power efforts. In response, China revised its international language and culture promotion (ILCP) strategy in mid-2020 by abolishing the CI Headquarters/Hanban and creating two sperate organisations: the Chinese International Education Foundation (CIEF) and the Centre for Language Education and Cooperation (CLEC). This shift demonstrates a decentralising trend across three dimensions: administrative, political, and fiscal. This article explores the reasons behind the CI’s rapid development and recent setbacks, examines the details of China’s decentralised ILCP strategy, and finds that the positive effects of this strategy are yet to be seen.

Keywords:

• China
• Confucius institute (CI)
• decentralisation
• soft power
• strategy

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Professor Kenneth King of the University of Edinburgh for his insightful comments on all versions of this paper and for his participation in most of the interviews with the participants in 2022. I also wish to thank the editors and reviewers for their valuable feedback, which has significantly improved this article.

Disclosure statement

I declare there are no competing interests for this article.

Notes

1 For example, Yang (2010), King (2013), Hartig (2014), Hubbert (2014), Zanardi (2016), Zhou and Luk (2016), Lo and Pan (2016), Repnikova (2022).

2 Hanban was short for Guojia Hanyu Guoji Tuiguang Lingdao Xiaozu Bangongshi (National Leading Group of Chinese Language Promotion International Standing Office). It initiated the CI project in 2004 and set up the CI Headquarters in 2007. Because the CI Headquarters and Hanban shared the same website, offices and staff, and the Chief Executive of the CI Headquarters was also the Director General of Hanban, CI Headquarters and Hanban were usually treated as one organisation.

3 The storyline of this research: this research aims to explore why the CI has experience rapid development and then significant setbacks over the past twenty years, why China abandoned CI Headquarters/Hanban to establish two separate organisations for its revised ILCP strategy, and what the details and effects of these changes are.

4 Three closures in Canada (CIs at McMaster University and Université de Sherbrooke closed in 2013, Toronto District School Board CI closed in 2014), one in France (CI at University of Lumière Lyon 2 and University of Jean Moulin Lyon 3 closed in 2013), three in the US (CIs at University of Chicago and Pennsylvania State University closed in 2014; CI at Pfeiffer University closed in 2016) and three in Sweden (CIs at Stockholm University, Karlstad University and Blekinge Institute of Technology closed in 2015).

5 See the bill at: https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/5515/text

6 See the three Bills at: NDAA 2021 https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/6395/text; Innovation and Competition Act 2021 https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-bill/1260/text; Confucius Act 2021 https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-bill/590/text.

7 The CI was mentioned 23 times in the debate by Michelle Donelan, Alicia Kearns, Iain Duncan Smith, and Tim Loughton. See the Bill debate at: https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2022-06-13/debates/C2676807-573C-4BD1-9F12-4E0C0BCBAE5D/HigherEducation(FreedomOfSpeech)Bil.

8 See his Twitter on 25 July 2022: https://twitter.com/RishiSunak/status/1551483430373826565

9 The link for GAO 2019 report: https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-19-401t; the link for GAO 2023 report: https://www.gao.gov/assets/d24105981.pdf.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Chinese Ministry of Education Humanities and Social Sciences Youth Foundation (Project ID: 23YJCZH107).

Notes on contributors

Si-yuan Li

Si-yuan Li received his MA and PhD from the University of Leeds, UK. He currently works as a lecturer in International Studies at Northwest University in China. His research interests include International Language and Culture Promotion Organisations, International Relations, International Education and Development.