Further to implementing the government’s New Southbound policy, October 30 to November 3, 2017 the Overseas Community Affairs Council (OCAC) hosted the 2017 OCAC Southeast Asia Taiwanese Business Trade and Investment Visiting Group, the first time this activity has been held.  21 representatives from Taiwan businesses based in Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, the Philippines and Myanmar with an interest in investing in Taiwan were invited to visit for exchange and to provide a matching platform for discussion of business opportunities. The aim of inviting the visiting group was, through facilitating cooperation between Southeast Asia-based Taiwanese businesses and Taiwan’s smart machinery, smart logistics and chain and franchise industries, creating cooperation opportunities and injecting vitality into domestic trade and investment.

The visiting group’s itinerary included visits to Contact Taiwan, MOEA, Asia Silicon Valley Development Agency, The Taichung City Precision Machinery Innovation Technology Park and other trade and investment organizations, and also visits to a number of outstanding startups to engage in exchange; the Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum and Business Opportunity Matching Discussion Meeting were also held, with outstanding startups in related industries invited to attend, the aim being to give the visitors an understanding of the current state of the development and technology of startups in Taiwan, the advantages and resources of Taiwan’s startups and provide opportunities for face to face discussions, to jointly create trade and investment cooperation business opportunities and promote Taiwan’s startups internationally.

The visit opened at the Ambassador Hotel Taipei on October 30 with a lunch hosted by OCAC Deputy Minister Tien Chiu-chin, who was accompanied by Director of the OCAC’s Department of Business Affairs Wang Shu-hua. In her speech, Tien stated that the OCAC is actively supporting the government’s New Southbound, 5+2 innovative industries and other policies, and is promoting business exchange between overseas Taiwanese business and domestic enterprises to explore business opportunities and allow their overseas business presence to be expanded; to this end, 23 programs have been held or visiting groups received this year, including 11 visiting groups, five chamber of commerce training programs and seven skills training courses; each of the activities has been enthusiastically received.

At the discussion meeting held on November 3, OCAC Vice Minister Roy Yuan-Rong Leu said that the New Southbound policy is people-based and the Taiwanese business people who  have been cultivating overseas markets for many years are ideal channels for Taiwan’s enterprises to take advantage of business opportunities in South East Asia; he said, the OCAC is willing to serve as the window and bridge  for investment in Taiwan and actively expand and integrate two-way investment service resources, aiming to stimulate trade and industrial innovation in Taiwan, deepen industrials links with New Southbound policy target countries and facilitate innovative industrial cooperation and market development by expanding investment in Taiwan.

---