Basseterre, St. Kitts, August 11, 2015 (SKNIS): Proud parents, guardians and supporters recently shared in the excitement of the 13 recipients of Taiwan scholarships during a recently held congratulatory dinner and award ceremony.
Republic of China (Taiwan) Ambassador to St. Kitts and Nevis, H.E. George Gow Wei Chiou stated that “education is a crucial mechanism for exploiting human resources.” His Excellency explained that in order to help in this endeavour the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and Development Fund from the Republic of China (Taiwan) has provided scholarships for its ally countries.
The ambassador further explained that the scholarships were designed for higher education and offer undergraduate, masters and doctorate programmes from renowned universities in Taiwan.
Minister of Education Hon. Shawn Richards saluted the government and people of the Republic of China on Taiwan “especially the resident ambassador and the hardworking team of the embassy who helped in a tremendous way to make this moment possible.”
“The many meetings and telephone calls between the offices are now bearing fruit,” said Minister Richards.
The Education Minister further thanked the former ambassador H.E. Miguel Tsao for facilitating the increase of scholarships during his tenure.
Minister of Nevis Affairs Vance Amory thanked the Taiwanese government for its support in providing educational opportunities and for allowing the recipients to pursue their desired field of study.
“This is a very important part of that friendship of providing cooperation through education and I wish all of the students who have been chosen that you will see this as a special opportunity to not only develop yourselves but also to provide that bridge between our country of St. Kitts and Nevis and the Republic of China on Taiwan and the people of that wonderful and gracious country.”
Eight students will be awardees of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) Taiwan Scholarship and five will be the awardees of the International Cooperation and Development Fund (ICDF) Scholarships.
Each scholarship recipient has been offered tuition, stipends, textbook allowances, insurance, housing, round-trip airfare from St. Kitts and Nevis to Taiwan and monthly allowance.
Majors offered include counselling and clinical psychology, environmental biology and fisheries science, civil engineering, medicine and computer science and information engineering.