Taipei: A quartet of foreign YouTubers invited to tour Taiwan for a week last month as part of a government-funded promotional campaign has generated more than 35 million views, a senior Taiwanese diplomat said Tuesday.
According to Focus Taiwan, Catherine Hsu, head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' (MOFA) Department of International Information Services, stated that the ministry had invited internet celebrities from two of the nation's diplomatic allies, namely Paraguay and Guatemala, and one each from the Czech Republic and Israel to travel around Taiwan from March 16 to 22.
Hsu revealed that the four YouTubers-Yolanda Park from Paraguay, Allisson Valdez from Guatemala, Eylon Levy from Israel, and Monika Zavrelova from the Czech Republic-visited Taiwan's iconic Taipei 101 Building, the historical former trading port of Taipei, Dadaocheng, and eastern Hualien County to delve into Taiwanese aboriginal culture, cuisine, and tea culture.
Furthermore, the YouTubers from Paraguay and Guatemala had the opportunity to savor Guatemalan coffee and Paraguayan beef rolls with Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung. Meanwhile, the Czech and Israeli YouTubers accompanied Deputy Foreign Minister Fran§ois Wu to Taipei Mandarin Experimental Elementary School. There, they learned about a pen pal program between the Taipei school and an Israeli elementary school and enjoyed a performance of traditional Czech music by the school's Chinese orchestra.
During and following their week-long visit to Taiwan, the four YouTubers shared over 200 social media posts on their respective platforms, amassing more than 35 million views in total, according to the MOFA official. Hsu emphasized that this viewership highlights the success of MOFA's ongoing campaign to invite foreign internet celebrities to Taiwan, aiming to promote the country globally. The ministry plans to continue these efforts in the future.
Hsu noted that the initiative targets audiences different from those who consume traditional news media, aiming to broaden the understanding and awareness of Taiwan among ordinary people and the younger generation.