TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Taiwan embassy in Guatemala and the Guatemala Presidential Planning Bureau (SEGEPLAN) held an online event promoting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ 2023 Taiwan Scholarship and the International Cooperation and Development Foundation (ICDF) Scholarship on Friday (Jan. 13).

Karla Arango, director of the SEGEPLAN Scholarship; Nelson Mendez, director of SEGEPLAN Scholarship promotion, and nearly 200 participants joined the event, according to an embassy press release.

Arango thanked the Taiwanese government for providing higher education opportunities with its allies such as Guatemala and said the number of scholarships given by Taiwan has increased each year. They cover a wide range of fields and are all full scholarships, Arango said.

So far, more than 400 Guatemalan students have benefited from Taiwanese scholarships, she said. The director encouraged participants to sign up.

Fatima Marroquin, a recipient of the Taiwan Scholarship, and Ximena Lainfiesta, an ICDF Scholarship recipient, shared their experiences on the application processes and life in Taiwan through pre-recorded videos.

Embassy staff and SEGEPLAN representatives then shared information about the application process. The participants expressed strong interest in applying and were excited about studying in Taiwan, the embassy said.

Taiwan and Guatemala established diplomatic ties in 1960 and have remained close allies since then.