Taiwan is bringing drone expertise into its International Youth Ambassadors Exchange Program for the first time, Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said Wednesday, August 12, as participants prepared to depart for the country’s diplomatic allies.

“We have invited young drone experts to join the program, and we are combining technology with youth diplomacy to demonstrate Taiwan's innovation and credibility,” Lin said at a send-off ceremony in Taipei.

Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry selected 50 out of nearly 600 college and university student applicants for this year’s program, including 10 with drone expertise. Participants will travel in two delegations from August 24 to September 6, visiting Palau, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Saint Kitts and Nevis.

Six students were also selected for the International Cooperation and Development Fund (Taiwan ICDF) Campus Ambassadors program, which will send participants to Saint Lucia and Eswatini.

During the event, Foreign Minister Lin ceremoniously handed over the nation’s flag to the youth ambassador delegations. Saint Lucia’s Ambassador Robert K. Lewis and Saint Kitts and Nevis’ Ambassador Donya L. Francis also delivered remarks, both highlighting the importance of cultural exchanges between Taiwan and its diplomatic allies.

Speaking to Rti in an interview at the event, Ambassador Francis said that diplomatic allies could benefit from Taiwan’s drone expertise: “I think, for our countries or the allied countries, we can learn from Taiwan and we can get to see our country from drones and see how Taiwan uses these drones for its development.”

The youth ambassadors are undertaking about two weeks of training this month at Ming Chuan University and the Asia UAV AI Innovation Application R&D Center in Chiayi County.