A total of 13 beneficiaries of the Taiwan Scholarship and Huayu Enrichment Scholarship Program were recognized by the Ministries of Education and Foreign Affairs June 11 for outstanding performances during their stay in the country.
Selected from 560 scholarship recipients from 66 countries in their final semester of study in Taiwan, the 13 graduating students were recognized for surpassing their peers in areas of individual specialization, intellectual achievement and public services.
Among the recognized individuals, Li Hsu-ya was singled out for her exceptional sports accomplishments. Studying at Institute of Sports Sciences at University of Taipei, the Malaysia national won the 200-meter individual medley at the 2019 National Intercollegiate Athletic Games held in southern Taiwan’s Chiayi County.
Joining Li is Ahmet Faruk Isik, a political science graduate student at Taipei City-based National Chengchi University who received distinction for his achievements in the international relations field. He is a special contributor at Turkish think tank Bosphorus Center for Asian Studies and has published articles praising Taiwan’s successful management of the COVID-19 pandemic in multiple Turkish media outlets.
Isik additionally co-wrote a book titled “Taiwan Studies in Turkey II—History, Economy and International Relations,” which was jointly published by Taipei Economic and Cultural Mission in Ankara and Ankara University’s Asia-Pacific Research Center last year.
Another student, Manoj Kumar Panigrahi from India, was honored for his contributions to public services. A candidate at NCCU’s International Doctoral Program in Asia-Pacific Studies, Panigrahi has delivered over 100 speeches and organized activities at around 50 elementary and junior high schools countrywide in an effort to promote local understanding of India.
According to the MOE, the scholarship programs serve as platforms for boosting exchanges, enhancing mutual understanding and facilitating friendship between students from home and abroad. The multicultural environment offered by the programs is expected to broaden recipients’ horizons, the ministry added.
Established in 2004, the program encourages outstanding students from countries around the world to study Mandarin or undertake degree programs in Taiwan. (YCH-E)
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