MANILA -- The government of Taiwan will be holding more job fairs for Filipinos this year, following the success of a job fair in Isabela in June.

According to the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO), 700 applicants were hired on the spot and about 3,000 qualified for various positions offered by Taiwan employers during its job fair in Isabela. 

Because of the success of the job fair, another will be held on September 11 in Ilocos Sur and October 13 in Leyte.

“All for the purpose of hiring skilled workers, especially our factory workers. They are the most preferred factory workers…And what is very important there is they have very good benefits. You know that the minimum wage for our factory workers is about 27,410 NTDs that is equivalent to about 48,000 pesos,” MECO Chairman and Resident Representative Silvestre Bello III said.

There are currently around 155,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Taiwan.

Around 125,000 of them are factory workers due to Taiwan’s vibrant semiconductor industry. But aside from factory workers, Taiwan also has a growing demand for caregivers and teachers.

Lately, the MECO has been deploying an average of 3,000 to 5,000 OFWs per month. Bello believes that Taiwan remains a safe and ideal labor destination for Filipinos, despite news on increasing tensions with China.

Representative Wallace Chow of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in the Philippines (TECO) also explained that both Taiwan and China continue to share a healthy relationship in trade.

 “I think Taiwan is still a very safe place. Although there are many military drills from China, but I think their purpose is not to invade Taiwan immediately or in the near future…we rely on Chinese market but China also rely on Taiwan’s supply chain. About more than 35% of Taiwan’s export go to China so without Taiwan providing those medium goods then China cannot supply to the whole world of their final goods,” Chow said.

Chow also believes that both Taiwan and the Philippines do not want any war with China.

“You know Taiwan and the Philppines are all peace loving countries, we don’t want to have any disputes, or quarrels, or even war with our big brother, you know, our big neighbor. But since the big brother is very aggressive, we just want to keep the opportunity for further dialogue with them. We don’t want to provoke and we want to have a good relationship with China. I think the same as the Philippines. Nobody want to have a war,” he said.

Taiwan has secured a semiconductor dominance, as it continues to supply about 46 percent of the chips globally, according to various reports. 

Chow said Taiwan would also like to help the Philippines develop its own semiconductor industry by cultivating talents. 

Under the “New Southbound Policy,” which aims to enhance cooperation with its neighboring countries, the Taiwan government continue to offer scholarships for around 2,000 Filiipinos each year. 

Available scholarships include undergraduate, masters and Ph.D. programs in various academic fields, as well as Mandarin language studies.

On Friday, 10 Filipino students were awarded scholarships from Taiwan’s International Development and Cooperation Fund (ICDF). 

Among them is Joseph Brian Bang-git from the Mt. Province, who will be taking a 2 year International Master Program in Civil Engineering and Management at the National Cheng Kung University.

“Itong scholarship ng Taiwan hindi naman po siya planado. Nakita ko lang siya while browsing sa Facebook, then nakita ko may scholarship application and I said to myself why not try?…I really want to enter the academe…so it will really help me a lot in employment…professional development also, Taiwan naman is known for its engineering  so I think it would be a great help in my career,” Bang-git said.

In his speech, Chow said that all Filipino students awarded with Taiwan scholarships, can also work in Taiwan after graduation.

“I encourage you to promote this study, opportunities in Taiwan to your friends and colleagues, including internship and short term immersive programs. Finally, I hope you will consider working in Taiwan after completing your studies. Since 2017, the Taiwan government has launched the Taiwan employment Gold card, an open work permit that allows unlimited entry and exit from Taiwan. This card offer foreign professionals income tax benefits and very competitive salaries,” Chow said.

Aside from offering scholarships for Filipino students to study in Taiwan, Taiwan is also planning to build more collaborations and connections with leading universities in the Philippines for training and recruitment, according to Chow.