Australian students to gain language skills through New Colombo Plan

I am pleased to announce that from 2019 the Australian Government will provide new opportunities for Australian undergraduates undertaking New Colombo Plan scholarships and mobility programs to gain proficiency in Indo-Pacific languages.

Under the new Guidelines for Mobility and Scholarship Programs released today, the New Colombo Plan will support up to six months language training for scholars and provide language-training grants for semester-based mobility projects.

As stated in the 2017 Foreign Policy White Paper, this reflects the Government's commitment to develop and deepen our personal networks throughout the Indo-Pacific region, and ensure we are better placed to take advantage of global opportunities.

The New Colombo Plan gives our leaders of the future the opportunity to live, study and undertake work-based learning in the Indo Pacific. By the end of 2018, the New Colombo Plan will have supported more than 30,000 Australian undergraduates build networks and gain cultural and professional understanding of the region.

Learning a language is an important component of the New Colombo Plan experience. Providing language training under the New Colombo Plan aims to enhance the way Australian businesses engage and communicate with our neighbours in the Indo-Pacific.