In mid-February, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Economic Affairs will recall their ambassadors and economic counselors stationed in Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) member states for a four-day intensive training session on promoting and lobbying for the ROC's inclusion in those trade organizations, officials said today during a meeting of the International Economic and Trade Strategic Task Force (IETSTF).
This training is part of the government's preparations to launch an all-out effort for regional economic integration. Every relevant agency must also quickly draw up and present its action plans for helping the nation join the TPP, Premier Jiang Yi-huah directed while hosting the IETSTF meeting, which focused on TPP and RCEP preparations. All preparations to join the TPP are expected to be completed by this July.
The agency action plans are to be comprehensive and encompass five orientations: liberalization, organizational structure, advocacy and communication, foreign lobbying and personnel training. Bureaus were directed to schedule acts of liberalization on major issues, develop industrial restructuring and complementary measures, and conduct communication and advocacy in a practical fashion in order to create more favorable conditions for ROC entry into the TPP.
The premier expects agencies to implement their policies with two strategic orientations: liberalizing the domestic economy and trade and winning foreign support. Strengthening communication and advocacy to build public consensus, accelerating relevant systemic reforms, undertaking industrial restructuring, bolstering economic and trade relationships with TPP and RCEP member states, and displaying the country's determination and efforts to liberalize are all objectives of this campaign.
The Executive Yuan will periodically take inventory of the progress of the effort throughout, with the premier himself presiding over the supervision, and report these developments to President Ma Ying-jeou.