Pinoy students get Taiwan scholarships

CEBU, Philippines — To implement the “New Southbound Policy” which aims to enhance cooperation between Taiwan and its neighboring countries, the Ministry of Education (MOE) of Taiwan and the Taiwan International Development and Cooperation Fund (ICDF) have once again selected outstanding Filipino students as scholarship recipients to study in Taiwan.

This year, 20 students were awarded with the MOE Taiwan scholarship while 65 students will study Mandarin through the Taiwan Huayu (Mandarin) Enrichment Scholarship, and 10 students were awarded with the Taiwan ICDF scholarship.

Each year, the Taiwan Government offers various types of scholarships for approximately 2,000 Filipino students to study in Taiwan. The scholarships are available for Mandarin language studies, and undergraduate, master’s, and Ph.D. degree programs in numerous academic fields.

Last July 19, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in the Philippines held the 2024 Scholarship Awards Ceremony for the scholarship recipients. During the program, Representative Wallace Chow congratulated the scholars for their achievements and encouraged them to promote study opportunities in Taiwan to their friends and colleagues.

Chairman and Resident Representative Silvestre Bello III of the Manila Economic & Cultural Office also encouraged Filipino scholars to serve as an enduring bond of friendship between Taiwan and the Philippines.

Meanwhile, Cindi Chen, director of Taiwan Tourism Administration, Bangkok Office, said the Filipinos can continue visiting Taiwan visa-free until July 31, 2025, when it will be reviewed for further extension.

This visa-free initiative has started in Nov. 1, 2017, wherein Philippine nationals are eligible to travel to Taiwan visa-free for 14 days.

Chen made the statement during the Taiwan Tourism Workshop in Cebu held last July 19, an event attended by travel agencies from both Taiwan and Cebu, as well as various airline companies that they offer various fare discounts and promos on what places to go in Taiwan through their Taiwan World of Wonders. — (FREEMAN)