At this week's 2016 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Women and the Economy Forum, Taiwan enhanced its visibility by showcasing its achievements in advancing women's economic development in the Asia-Pacific.
Executive Yuan Minister without Portfolio Lin Mei-chu led a 15-member delegation of public- and private-sector representatives to the forum, which took place June 27-30 in Peru. Focusing on the forum theme of "Breaking barriers to economic integration of women in the global market," participating economies shared their experiences on creating women-friendly work environments and promoting measures that encourage broader participation by the region's women in global market opportunities.
Speaking at the High Level Policy Dialogue session, Minister Lin highlighted Taiwan's achievements in creating business opportunities and empowering women economically. She shared Taiwan's experiences from the APEC multi-year project Innovation for Women and Economic Development, inviting other APEC economies to a conference in Taipei this September to see the results of this multi-year project.
Also at the forum, Minister Lin was invited to deliver opening remarks for an award ceremony hosted by Russia to recognize outstanding women-owned small and medium-sized enterprises.
Throughout the weeklong conference, the delegation from Taiwan held bilateral meetings with the Philippines, Peru and Papua New Guinea as well as numerous sideline meetings with other APEC economies. They engaged in fruitful exchanges on how best to craft policies on women's participation in the economy.
Taiwan's longstanding efforts to create an environment for women's economic empowerment and innovation have garnered affirmation from many APEC members. Taiwan will continue participating in the activities of the APEC women forum in order to strengthen collaborations with other Asia-Pacific economies and contribute to regional issues of women's economic participation.