Caring for new immigrants
On July 1, the National Immigration Agency announced a list of recipients of scholarships and study grants for new immigrant residents and their children.
According to information published on the agency’s Web site, more than 6,000 people received such awards, which added up to a grand total of more than NT$20 million (US$643,273). Both of these figures are higher than in any previous year.
One special thing that has happened this year is that, apart from previously existing awards, there is a new category of “incentive awards for new residents’ certification.” Any new resident who takes a technician certification test and gains a certificate can apply for an incentive award.
This year, 82 new residents collected incentive payments for class B certification and 922 collected payments for class C certification.
The award winners, who are usually working out of sight, are just some of the new residents who have gained such certificates — many others who have done so are not on the list.
The agency launched its scholarship and study grant program in 2012. My daughter has applied for this kind of financial aid several times, so I knew that such awards were available.
Although I follow the news from home and abroad every day, I missed the news about this year’s introduction of incentive awards for new residents’ certification.
I only found out about it when I saw the news about the publication of the list of recipients. Some new residents who I know have gained certification as bookkeepers, manicurists and so on, but they also missed the chance to apply this year.
The policy of providing incentive awards for new residents’ certification is a good one. It can encourage them to stand on their own two feet, study new skills, make use of their talents, express their personalities and make them more competitive, so that they will no longer be at a disadvantage in the employment market.
These awards can be heart-warming for new immigrants and make their hard work more visible.
Unfortunately, not many new residents know about this policy. Many of them spend most of their time making a living.
One of my friends is a manicurist from Vietnam who works more than 10 hours a day. Even taking a rest is a luxury for her, never mind finding time to read the papers or pay attention to online news reports, so she mostly depends for information on what other women tell her by word of mouth.
Good policies should be well publicized through schools and communities. Borough wardens in particular can make announcements over local public address systems.
As well as letting more new resident women know that there is an award they can apply for, it would also let the general public see how much the government cares about new residents, thus generating more respect for immigrants in society at large.
Li Yuezhi
Taipei
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