Over 300 students benefit from Taiwan Scholarship programme

Over 300 primary, secondary and post secondary level students received financial assistance for their education under the Taiwan Scholarship programme last Thursday, October 13.{{more}}

A total of 55 students from the community college; 130 secondary school students and 206 primary students, totaling 391 students, received financial assistance through the assistance of the Government and People of the Republic of China (Taiwan).

Students in the post-secondary and secondary category received EC$1,000 each, while primary school students received $400 for the academic year, which is expected to assist with the students’ welfare.

The scholarship programme was started in 1997, with USD$100,000 allocated each year, and to date, has benefitted thousands of Vincentian students, H.E Weber Shih, Ambassador of the Republic of China (Taiwan) said.

“This programme has been providing financial support so that they (students) can continue their education, fulfill their goals and make contributions to the development of the nation,” the Ambassador explained.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Taiwan were similar, according to Ambassador Shih, in that as island states with limited natural resources, it was important that special emphasis be placed on the development of the human resources.

Chief Education Officer Lou-Anne Gilchrist also acknowledged the important role the scholarship programme had in the Ministry of Education’s realizing its goal of developing the human resource, but she reminded the parents of the students of their responsibility to spend the money on what it was intended to be spent on.

“The money is for the child’s education,” she said.

Gilchrist went on to say that a significant portion of the budget was allocated to education and that the time had come for the Ministry of Education to begin seeing the reward of the financial inputs.

She therefore called on all teachers to play their part in ensuring academic success.

“We would only get quality outcomes if the financial resources are matched by the human inputs,” the Chief Education Officer said.

“You (teachers) have the skills, competencies and the know-how; do what you are supposed to do,” Gilchrist said.(DD)