Taiwan sows seeds of success for local firms in SE Asia

2016/05/11

A seminar on conducting teacher development programs in Southeast Asian languages was held for the first time May 6 in central Taiwan’s Nantou County by the Ministry of Education, underscoring the commitment of the government to strengthening the country’s ties with Southeast Asia.

Conducted under the MOE’s New Inhabitants Talent-Developing Project launched in December last year, the seminar aims to help schools provide courses in Southeast Asian languages for Taiwan’s elementary and high schoolers by 2018. It is expected that students, especially the nation’s 250,000 children of immigrants from Southeast Asia, will develop language skills enabling them to play a key role in growing Taiwan’s economic footprint in Southeast Asia.

According to the latest MOE statistics, the number of Southeast Asians studying in Taiwan was 26,000 last year, or 24 percent of all overseas students in Taiwan, up 13 percent from 2014. In comparison the number of people from Taiwan studying in the region was less than 3,000.

Rebecca Lan, deputy director-general of MOE’s Department of International and Cross-strait Education said in this era of globalization, Taiwan’s younger generations should engage more with the world, especially nations in Southeast Asia achieving consistent economic growth and crying out for talent. “Some young people view Southeast Asia as a tourist destination, but there could be a sea change in this thinking if they studied, interned or worked there.”

The MOE has supported Taiwan undergraduate students studying abroad for up to 12 months or taking internships for two months since 2007. Southeast Asia is one of the major focuses of the project, with 2,334 Taiwan students receiving ministry assistance to study or work in the region to date.

New Taipei City Government is also helping Taiwan’s young people go south. Home to more Southeast Asian immigrants than any other municipality, the city initiated a program sending second-generation Southeast Asian teenagers to the region last year. A total of 46 made the trips, during which they visited Taiwan businesses and interacted with local students.

Kang Ya-mei, program overseer with NTCG’s Education Bureau, said many of the participants were deeply inspired by their trip. “Some are now interested in learning their mother tongues, while others are considering careers capitalizing on their unique skill sets linking Taiwan and their parents’ native countries.”

As mainland China dims in luster due to rising labor costs and a high employee turnover rate, more and more Taiwan businesses are channeling their overseas investment toward Southeast Asia. This is largely due to affordable labor, optimal location and public sector support. The efforts taken by the MOE and other public sector entities are key to strengthening bilateral ties and maintaining the region’s growth momentum.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=244544&ctNode=2194&mp=9)