Dubai: Children of Indian expats from Kerala in the UAE will soon be able to learn their mother tongue Malayalam for free through a project launched by the state government.
A.K. Balan, Kerala Minister for Law, Culture and Parliamentary Affairs, and Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes, inaugurated the UAE chapter of ‘Malayalam Mission’ at a function held at the Indian Consulate in Dubai on Wednesday evening.
The minister said the mission will foster the creative talents of the children of expatriate Malayalis and inculcate in them a passion for the language, which acquired the status of a classical language in 2013.
Suja Susan George, director of Malayalam Mission, said a national level coordinator and an ad-hoc committee will be formed in collaboration with the community groups here.
“They will offer services of study centres where volunteering teachers, who will be trained by the Mission, will offer classes based on the courses specifically prepared for this. The mission offers certificate, diploma, higher diploma, and senior diploma courses.”
She said students will be given maximum flexibility to learn the language in their own pace and time. “Those who finish the higher diploma course will become eligible to receive a certificate equivalent to tenth grade from the state government. This will specifically help those wanting to apply for government jobs in Kerala in future since it is now mandatory for the candidates.”
Online learning materials will be made available through the website appmm.cdit.org
