A program to export Taiwan's higher education and expand recruitment of international students is beginning to deliver visible results, Premier Jiang Yi-huah said today after hearing a report from the Ministry of Education (MOE). Initiated by former Education Minister Wu Ching-ji in 2011, the program has been building an environment friendly to overseas students while marketing the advantages of studying in Taiwan.
Premier Jiang said MOE Minister Chiang Wei-ling recently traveled to Malaysia to promote Taiwan's universities at the Taiwan Higher Education Fair, which drew thousands of visitors. Acknowledging the hard work of Minister Chiang and the MOE staff, Premier Jiang also thanked former Minister Wu for his vision and long-term efforts in exporting higher education.
Southeast Asia represents Taiwan's largest market for recruiting foreign students, Jiang said. To give these students a better understanding of Taiwan's higher education system, the premier asked the MOE to work with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Overseas Community Affairs Council and National Science Council to increase education exchanges and academic cooperation with Southeast Asian countries. The MOE should also devise incentives that would appeal to students across Southeast Asia, which in turn will aid Taiwan's transformation into a regional hub for higher education.
According to the MOE, the program's goals are to help domestic schools create an international learning environment, encourage top students from emerging markets to study Chinese or other subjects in Taiwan, and raise the quality and quantity of foreign students in Taiwan.
Exporting Taiwan's higher education is only one part of a broader strategy, Jiang said. "When considering the development of human resources in a shifting population, the more important questions should be: How do we attract and retain people—from vocational or high school on up through postdoctoral education—and put their skills to use? How do we deal with the population shift? How can we recruit the kind of talent needed by Taiwan to compete in the global economy?"
Premier Jiang asked Cabinet members to bring their ideas on these and other questions to the upcoming cross-ministerial meetings on human resources, which will be convened by the Executive Yuan on a regular basis. The premier said he will chair the meetings himself and looks forward to seeing further breakthroughs in this area.