A nine-month programme of events celebrating links between Scotland and China is being launched on February 21, just after Chinese New Year, with a spectacular lantern festival at the Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh.

The China Now in Scotland programme, organised to coincide with the Beijing Olympics, will explore business, cultural, educational, scientific and sport-related themes. It is being co-ordinated by the Confucius Institute for Scotland, based at Edinburgh University.

Between 30 and 50 Scottish schools offer Chinese in their curriculum, and with new developments such as the formation of the Scotland-China Education Network (SCEN) and the opening of new Confucius Classrooms, this figure looks set to rise.

www.chinanow-inscotland.org.uk.