Taiwan and Flanders Mark 10 years of Formal Educational Relations
On June 4, 2024, the Flemish Department of Chancellery and Foreign Affairs, the Flemish Department of Education and Training, and the Taipei Representative Office in the EU and Belgium jointly hosted an information session in honor of 10 years of educational relations between Taiwan and Flanders. The goal of the information session was to enhance exchanges for the benefit of both education communities.
The information session brought together Flemish stakeholders in its compulsory education and higher education, including representatives of research universities and universities of applied sciences, international relations officers from the education networks, and government officials from education departments and councils. They were joined online by representatives from Taiwan’s Ministry of Education and presidents, vice-presidents and international relations officials from 11 leading universities in Taiwan: National Cheng Kung University, National Chengchi University, National Chung Hsing University, National Sun Yat-sen University, National Taichung University of Education, National Taipei University of Technology, National Taiwan University, National Taiwan Normal University, National Tsing Hua University, National Yang Ming Jiao Tung University, and Taipei Medical University.
The participants were welcomed by Ann Verhaegen, Secretary General of the Flemish Department of Education and Training. She applauded the 10-year anniversary of the signing of the first memorandum of understanding between Flanders and Taiwan, which happened to be on education, and Flanders and Taiwan subsequently signed a comprehensive agreement covering several fields. Much has happened in this last decade, for example a visit to Belgium by Minister of Digital Affairs Audrey Tang which gave government officials insight in Taiwan’s digital policy; Prof. Benson Ye of National Taiwan University giving a presentation on gaming in learning for the Council of Europe; and an important visit to Taiwan by a Flemish government delegation to evaluate the memorandum of understanding. The number of exchanges with Taiwan has increased, especially in higher education, but the Secretary General, Ann Verhaegen, is hoping there will be more collaborations in the future, in the semiconductor field in particular but also in languages and culture to give people in Taiwan and Flanders a more profound understanding of each other.
Dr. Roy Chun Lee 李淳, Representative at the Taipei Representative Office in the EU and Belgium, expressed his agreement with Ms. Verhaegen. During his short time in Belgium he has already had the opportunity to visit several universities, at which he noted the ongoing exchanges with and interest in Taiwan. In fact, the University of Ghent has a delegation in Taiwan this month. So, while having an integrated agreement is very important, education is and should remain top of the agenda for bilateral exchanges.
Dr. Koen Verlaeckt, Secretary-General of the Flemish University Council, attended the meeting representing all Flemish universities. He has visited Taiwan twice in the past and is a strong supporter of more intense bilateral relations between Taiwan and Flanders. He considers that the academic community in Taiwan is characterized by three important features that support this: hospitality, resilience—for example given international tensions, the pandemic, and the recent earthquake—and a like-mindedness which makes all exchanges easygoing and comfortable. He was therefore happy to note that there is a growing interest on the part of Flemish institutions of higher education in more exchanges with their counterparts in Taiwan.
Mr. Jens Vermeersch, Chair of the Commission for International Education and Training Policies of the Flemish Education Council, represented the compulsory education stakeholders during the meeting. He hopes to establish more secondary education level exchanges with Taiwan, for instance related to gaming and cooking. He thinks that the European E-Twinning format would be ideal for starting pilot projects for virtual exchanges. He also hopes to see vocational education and training exchanges with Taiwan, for instance through internships for hospitality program students. He said that technical education providers could undoubtedly learn much more on topics such as green education and also sees the need for policy exchanges on topics such as teacher training and quality control.
After learning the views of the Flemish stakeholders’ present, Dr. Nicole Lee Yen-Yi 李彥儀, Director of the Taipei Representative Office in the EU and Belgium’s Education Division, and Education Division Secretary Lin Ya-Ting林雅婷, gave a comprehensive overview of Taiwan’s education system at both K-12 and higher education levels, current education policies, and programs available for international exchanges. The representatives of the universities in Taiwan then each gave a brief introduction of their university and the opportunities and hopes for cooperation with their Flemish counterparts.
Ms. Renilde Knevels, Policy Advisor Internationalization at the Flemish Higher Education Council, gave the final presentation of the day, outlining the Flemish higher education system, funding opportunities for international exchanges, and ideas for establishing connections and finding potential collaboration opportunities.
The moderators of the information session, Sam Vandenabeele from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Marie-Anne Persoons, Policy Advisor International in the Flemish Department of Education and Training, ended the session with a brief Q&A during which other ideas, such as looking into opportunities for language exchange in adult education, and using Taiwan’s TEEP-program to provide internships for associate degree programs. Undoubtedly several participants will engage in further brainstorming and establish new exchanges between Taiwan and Flanders.
