MOFA welcomes 105 students selected for New Southbound Policy fellowship

Taipei, Sept. 13 (CNA) A total of 105 undergraduate students from 12 countries in Southeast Asia, South Asia and the Asia-Pacific were welcomed by Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) on Friday as they began a five-month fellowship program in the country.

At a ceremony in Taipei, Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said the students selected for the 2024 New Southbound Policy Elite Study Program will spend the next five months taking courses related to their majors at five universities.

At the same time, the fellowship recipients will "acquire a better understanding of Taiwan's respect for liberty, vibrant civil society and democratic way of life" by taking part in Chinese-language classes and an array of cultural activities, Lin said.

"I am confident talent exchanges between the young people of Taiwan and New Southbound Policy partner countries will grow stronger in the near future," he said.

The 105 selected students are from 12 countries, including Australia, Cambodia, Indonesia, India, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

According to Lin, 1,017 students from New Southbound Policy-target nations have come to Taiwan to study medicine and biomedicine, semiconductors, agricultural technology and cross-strait relations since the program was initiated in 2022.

He added that the fellowship program "demonstrates Taiwan's willingness to address issues of concerns" to Southeast Asian Nations and is "in line with the United Nations' sustainable development goals (SDGs)."

The fellowship program is among the initiatives under the New Southbound Policy, which was launched in 2017 under former President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to expand the country's economic, educational and cultural links with Southeast Asian and Asia-Pacific nations.

Friday's event was also attended by representatives from several foreign missions in Taiwan, namely those from Vietnam, Thailand, India, Indonesia, New Zealand and Malaysia, according to MOFA.

The universities in partnership with MOFA in this year's program are National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, National Chung Hsing University, Taipei Medical University, National Taipei University of Technology, and National Quemoy University.

The fellowship program pays each student's tuition fee, a round-trip plane ticket, while also providing free accommodation and a monthly stipend of NT$8,000 (US$249.86).