Brazil’s growth gets foreigners to learn Portuguese

By Waldirene Biernath

Source: Google images

The Brazilian economy growth and the multinational companies’ presence in the country have increased the interest of foreigners to learn the Portuguese language.

While Europeans and Americans face high unemployment and risk of recession, Brazil has become the fashion’s country abroad - and consequently, the Portuguese language has getting more prominence.

Google images

In the last decade, the number of students enrolled in Celpe-Bras, the Portuguese proficiency exam recognized by the Ministry of Education, skyrocketed from 1155 to 6139.

"The importance of the Portuguese language has been growing, since Brazil has stood out internationally regarded for its stable economy and its international relations. The value of a language is highly associated with the market," said Matilde Scaramucci, the Unicamp Institute of Studies Language’s director.

The Celpe-Bras exam is applied in 48 countries, and it can be taken, for example, by an executive who wants to prove language proficiency to work at multinational companies in Brazil or by a foreigner interested in studying at a Brazilian university.

Dutch companies have encouraged senior executives to take on functions in countries considered strategic. The "boom" of foreigners taking Portuguese courses is also noticeable abroad. The number of enrolled people in Brazilian cultural centers; defrayed by Itamaraty (Ministry of External Relations) and spread over several countries; rose from 17,500 in 2004 to 31,700 last year.

Vocabulary:

(to) skyrocket (verb) if an amount, value, or cost skyrockets, it rises quickly to a very high level, e.g.: “The number of calls we received skyrocketed”.

take on (phrasal verb) to begin to perform or deal with; assume; e.g.: took on new responsibilities

(to) defray  (verb): to provide money to pay for something.

Source:

http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/mercado/991439-crescimento-do-brasil-leva-estrangeiros-a-aprenderem-portugues.shtml