China's French students eye employment in Africa

Students of French in China are snubbing the City of Light and looking more to Africa for post-college work, Financial Times reported. Beijing Foreign Studies University, a premier language college historically affiliated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, says the number of its French graduates who take jobs in Africa has more than doubled, from about 14% in ’04 to about a third in recent years. With the labor market tight at home and Chinese companies in Africa luring fresh grads abroad with above-average salaries, many French students are happy to take advantage of the recent rapid expansion of Sino-African economic ties.