Premier Chen Chien-jen on Monday received a Taiwanese Chambers of Commerce of North America (TCCNA) delegation. The premier said the government will build broader service platforms for overseas Taiwanese businesses and help them expand operations, and he expressed hope that Taiwanese companies worldwide will in turn be eager to invest back in Taiwan.
The premier noted that a TCCNA delegation recently met with U.S. senators, representatives and executive branch officials in late March to lobby and hold bilateral meetings on issues of concern for overseas Taiwanese businesses, and to urge Taiwan-U.S. cooperation in industries including semiconductors and electric vehicles. Those meetings yielded excellent results, and the premier thanked the Taiwanese business representatives for serving as a vital bridge for Taiwan-U.S. relations and advancing bilateral trade and economic exchange.
To expand Taiwan's foreign trade footprint, the government has proactively initiated a number of bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, and in June 2022 the U.S.-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade was launched. The initiative has enabled the two sides to hold wide-ranging discussions on customs administration and trade facilitation, good regulatory practices, services domestic regulation, anti-corruption and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Especially in regard to SMEs, by sharing data, removing trade barriers, and other means, future bilateral cooperation between Taiwan and the U.S. will allow Taiwanese SMEs to integrate into the global supply chain and expand into new export markets, the premier said.
During the more than three years when the COVID-19 pandemic engulfed the world, the Taiwanese public displayed admirable unity in combating the virus. The government, having already deployed the "five plus two" innovative industries plan, took further preemptive action by promoting the Six Core Strategic Industries plan and Three Major Programs for Investing in Taiwan, all of which have achieved significant success. The premier said he welcomes Taiwanese companies to return home and invest in the nation and added that the government's expansion of service platforms will assist Taiwanese businesses operating overseas to improve their competitive advantage and broaden their horizons within the global market.