Taipei, July 9 (CNA) President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) on Thursday met participants in Taiwan's Global Pathfinders Initiative, saying the overseas exchange program will help prepare young people to contribute to Taiwan's future.

Speaking at the Presidential Office, Lai thanked outgoing French Office in Taipei Director Franck Paris for supporting exchanges with France and said the program had strengthened Taiwan-France cooperation.

"I envy all of you for having the opportunity to go to France," Lai said, describing the country as a global leader in technology, culture, sports and other fields.

The Ministry of Education initiative supports short-term overseas exchanges in fields including public affairs, culture, semiconductors, sports and space. A total of 116 young people have taken part in the program over the past two years.

Among the participants was Tsai Chiao-yi (蔡喬伊), an aerospace engineer who said the program strengthened her ambition to one day be an astronaut.

Tsai said visiting France's space center in Toulouse and meeting with officials from the Taiwan Space Agency and its French counterpart inspired her to pursue further studies in aerospace in France.

Another participant, Liu Yu-jan (劉宥然), who coordinates international exchange projects at the Kaohsiung Public Library, said the trip reshaped her career plans.

Originally hoping to promote local culture through libraries, Liu said visits to French cultural institutions and Taiwan's representative office convinced her to pursue public diplomacy instead. She has since registered to take Taiwan's diplomatic service examination.

During the event, Lai floated the idea of appointing sports ambassadors after hearing participants' suggestions and said Taiwan could learn from France's success in developing football.

He said he hopes Taiwan will one day qualify for the FIFA World Cup, joking about how the team might prepare to face stars such as Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland.