The Education and Youth Development Bureau has unveiled its Portuguese Language Training Programme for secondary school students.
The initiative is aimed at local students who want to boost their proficiency in the language in anticipation of tertiary education in Portugal, TDM reports.
The four-year programme is geared to local schools where Portuguese is not part of the curriculum and will offer places to 180 students.
[See more: The Portuguese are an ‘essential’ part of Macao, Ho Iat Seng says]
Luís Gomes, of the Education and Youth Development Bureau’s non-tertiary education department, said the course would enable students to focus on their higher education once arriving in Portugal instead of expending effort on simply learning Portuguese.
The scheme is also designed to give students an introduction to Portuguese culture and society.
Although Portuguese is one of Macao’s official languages, it is taught by only a few schools in the territory.