Education Minister Shawn Edward addressed potential scholarship recipients at the National Skills Development Centre this week, and stressed the importance of males being awarded scholarships to pursue their studies. This comes as the Taiwanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that it will grant 35 Saint Lucians scholarships to study in Taiwan.
He noted that while the Ministry awards prizes based on merit, a more concerted effort should be made to close the gender divide among recipients. āI want to see more young men applying for scholarships. It pains me to see we are sending 30 students overseas to study and 25 of them are young ladies with only five young men on that journey. We cannot continue to develop our country in such a lopsided way. There must be balance and parity along the lines of gender,ā he said while at the press launch.
The programmes offered by the Taiwanese MOFA scholarships provide excellent opportunities to young talented Saint Lucians to study in Taiwan for Bachelor, Master or PhD degrees.
He remarked that the Ministry of Education will ensure that more men are accepted into the programmes, thus improving the overall skillset of Saint Lucian youth: āI have always said to the team at the Ministry of Education, we will continue to employ a meritocracy. This is what will inform the selection process. But we have to be deliberate at times to ensure that some young men get into the programmes.ā
Edward also encourages young men to apply for the opportunities available to them. āThere are a lot of educational and scholarship opportunities available. I want you to apply. Apply to go to Cuba if you want to be a doctor. Apply to go to Indonesia. Apply to go to Serbia. Apply to go to Morocco. Apply to go and study in Hungary. Apply for everything that is before you,ā he encouraged.
Taiwanese scholarship recipients will also receive a monthly stipend from the government of Taiwan.
