Taiwan to set up agency promoting bilingual by 2030 initiative

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Taiwan to set up agency promoting bilingual by 2030 initiative


Taiwan to set up agency promoting bilingual by 2030 initiative

Taiwan to set up agency promoting bilingual by 2030 initiative

Task force aims to better coordinate English resources for 'go bilingual' project

Students in English class. (Getty Images)

Students in English class. (Getty Images)

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Cabinet on Thursday (Sept. 2) approved a draft for the establishment of a center dedicated to developing the vision of becoming an English-Mandarin bilingual country.

The Tsai administration has set forth plans for Taiwan to go bilingual by 2030, encouraging the incorporation of English services in the public and private sectors. The initiative, however, cannot be implemented without a Cabinet-level agency, according to the National Development Council (NDC).

The new agency will be responsible for coordinating resources from various departments and private organizations while playing a key role in policymaking, wrote CNA. It could be created as early as the end of the year.

The “go bilingual” objective will be carried out through multiple approaches in addition to a dedicated agency. These involve putting in place a sound English environment for all education levels, promoting digital learning, improving English proficiency assessment, and equipping government officials with language skills.

The facility will seek cooperation with educational, publishing, and tech businesses as well as NGOs to create a “bilingual ecology,” CNA quoted NDC Deputy Minister Shih Keh-her (施克和) as saying.

Governments at the central and local levels and companies have launched programs in line with the policy, spanning hiring drives for English teachers, better benefits for foreign talent, English services at banks, and more.