White paper urges Taiwan to reinvent itself as global talent hub

But local experts lament that recommendations in the US-produced document may be easier said than done   

Higher Education Times
Date: June 21, 2020
By: Joyce Lau

Sweeping changes are needed in the higher education system if Taiwan wants to boost modernisation, internationalisation and industry ties in the face of numerous challenges, according to a US government white paper.

The self-governed island has a relative lack of natural resources and suffers from diplomatic isolation and strained ties with its much larger neighbour, mainland China.

The white paper acknowledges some of these shortcomings, stating that Taiwan “is too small to be the best at everything, but it can become the world’s leader in specific sectors or technologies” if it relies on its strengths, such as the talents of its 23 million population, a tech industry that has made it a world leader in semiconductors and its high level of gender equality.

Taiwan’s universities will sprout up and out under latest state policy

But to reach its goals, Taiwan needs to make English an official language for work and governance, and reach out to the rest of the world, the paper suggests.   [FULL  STORY]