TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – International Air Transport Association's (IATA) training center was inaugurated in Taipei on Thursday (Nov. 14), helping connect the island nation’s aviation industry with the world.

The trade association, founded in 1945 and boasting 290 airline members that account for 82 percent of global air traffic, supports aviation activity and helps draft industry policies. It provides training programs in terms of operational safety, work efficiency, and business expansion, tutoring over 100,000 students and professionals every year, reported CNA.

The center’s opening in Taiwan means less time and money to be spent by local airlines on training their staff. Otherwise they would need to go abroad to attend relevant courses.

Taiwan-based China Airlines, Mandarin Airlines, EVA Air, and Uni Air are all members of IATA, said Ma Tao (馬濤), regional vice president of IATA for North Asia. The newly-founded Starlux Airlines, which is slated to begin service in 2020, is also in the process of applying for membership to the association, he added.

The center is the sixth IATA branch in Asia, in addition to those in Seoul, Singapore, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Shanghai. The association has 30 global branches in total, wrote Liberty Times.

Ma has spent much of his career representing China at the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Asked by the media about Taiwan’s failure to participate in ICAO due to political interference, he appeared reluctant to comment, other than saying the association is a non-government organization with the mission to serve air carriers and improve aviation safety, wrote LTN.