Take advantage of university scholarships in Taiwan – Miguel

Vincentians students have been urged to take advantage of university scholarships which are available to study in Taiwan.

This plea was made last Tuesday at the Peace Memorial Hall by both Minister of Education Girlyn Miguel and Ambassador for the Republic of China (ROC) (Taiwan) Baushuan Ger.{{more}}

The minister and the ambassador were speaking at a ceremony where 416 Vincentian students at the primary, secondary and college levels were awarded scholarships from the government of Taiwan.

Miguel, who is also deputy prime minister, stated that education is given top priority in St Vincent and the Grenadines because of its core responsibility in economic recovery and national development.

“Our present and future prosperity lies in the education of our children and young people,” she said.

According to Miguel, education is fundamental to building a just, inclusive and fair nation and brings economic success and increased life chances to students.

“Each child, each student matters and must be included in our national plans for development,” she added.

Ambassador for the Republic of China (ROC) (Taiwan) Baushuan Ger congratulated the scholarship recipients, further encouraging them make use of the scholarships to better themselves, the society, country and even the world. He also stated that education has been one of the major priorities in the collaboration between Taiwan and SVG.

“Education is not just the right thing to do, but also smart economics,” he said “because education holds the key to a nation’s sustainable development, our two countries have been working closely in this field.”

The Ambassador pointed out that the scholarship programme was implemented in 1998, with a new phase being launched in 2009.

Every year the Republic of China (ROC) allocates US$100,000 (EC$269,000) to the programme to help financially challenged students from primary, secondary and tertiary schools. Over the years, thousands of students have benefited from the programme.

To further develop human resources in St Vincent and the Grenadines, Taiwan also launched MOFA and Taiwan ICDF Scholarships in 2004 for Vincentians to pursue degrees in Taiwan.

Ambassador Ger encouraged this year’s recipients to apply for the aforementioned scholarships in the future.

So far, 50 Vincentians have completed degrees in Taiwan and currently over 60 young people are reading for degrees in Taiwanese Universities.

Also present at the ceremony was chief education officer Lou-Anne Gilchrist, who urged students to ensure that their parents provide the resources which will support their student’s attendance at school.

“The scholarships are to support student’s attendance and retention at school,” she added. “It would not be sufficient to support student’s attendance at school if we do not also provide support also for the student’s parents and guardians to develop themselves educationally and socially.”

Cheques for $400, $800 and $1,000 were presented to primary, secondary and post secondary level students respectively, by the ambassador, the minister and the chief education officer.(AS)