Manila, May 27 (CNA) Taiwan and the Philippines recently renewed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on cooperation in education, extending it for another five years in an effort to continue promoting bilateral exchanges in higher education, Taiwanese officials based in Manila said.
In accordance with President Tsai Ing-wen's New Southbound Policy, educational cooperation and exchanges between Taiwan and the Southeast Asian country will continue to deepen under the MOU, the officials said.
The MOU was first signed in 2012, in an effort to boost exchanges between personnel and educational institutions, and was due to expire on May 22, but has been extended for another five years.
Taiwan's representative to the Philippines Gary Lin noted that the people of the Philippines have good English-language ability and that a large percentage of population is young.
If people from the Philippines come to Taiwan to study, it will help alleviate the problem of low enrollment at Taiwanese universities due to the country's stagnant birth rate, Lin said, adding that Taiwan has good teachers and a sound learning environment.
Philippine students will also have an opportunity to learn more about Taiwan's culture and gain a better understanding of the country, he said.
The bilateral efforts to boost exchanges in higher education included an MOU last year between Taiwanese universities in the Southern Taiwan Universities Alliance (STUA) and the University of the Philippines (UP) system.
Under the MOU, STUA offers at least 100 spots per year for teachers from the UP system to study for master's or doctoral degrees in Taiwan.
Meanwhile, many Taiwanese universities have sent delegations to Philippine schools on academic and educational exchanges.
Taiwan's New Southbound Policy seeks to develop closer ties with Southeast and South Asian countries, New Zealand and Australia.
