IDIC responds to AmCham 2005 Taiwan White Paper

June 2, 2005

The American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei released the "2005 Taiwan White Paper" on May 31. The report acknowledges that Taiwan has made "good progress" in the areas of copyright protection and strengthening the business environment, but criticized Taiwan for moving farther away from global integration and failing to attract talent amongst increasing regional and global competition. The report noted that Taiwan has started "sliding towards marginalization," and recommended doing "the right things" to maintain its economic power and strengthen its competitiveness.

The report specifically mentions the need for improvement in the following areas: reducing government intervention in business hiring; creating a world-class infrastructure; speeding up economic integration with China; and supplying adequate human resources to accommodate multinational companies.

Regarding the Chamber's valuable recommendations, the Industrial Development and Investment Center (IDIC) offers the following responses.

On hiring personnel for multinational companies: The IDIC has already requested that the Council of Labor Affairs and the Mainland Affairs Council loosen restrictions and revise current regulations on foreign nationals and mainland Chinese visiting Taiwan for business purposes.

Basic Infrastructure: The Legislative Yuan is currently reviewing the 10 New Major Construction Projects, a proposed government program which includes the conversion of the Taiwan Railway System to a rapid transit network; the construction of third-phase highways; MRT systems in northern, central, and southern Taiwan; and wastewater treatment and the desalinization plants for ground-level reservoirs.

Economic Integration with China: Taiwan has put forth measures and proposals that would make it easier for Chinese nationals to visit Taiwan as tourists in the near future; negotiations are also underway regarding the designation of free trade zones.

Human Resources: The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) is taking a number of steps to address the manpower shortage for multinational companies in Taiwan. The MOEA's Industrial Development Bureau is starting a master's degree course in industrial R&D while the IDIC is working to improve personnel recruitment channels. These measures are meant to coordinate with the Ministry of the Interior's "Science and Technology R&D Alternative Conscription Program", the Council for Economic Planning and Development's Elite Overseas Study Program, and plans by the Ministry of Education to allow foreign universities to establish branch schools in Taiwan.

The IDIC said that it would continue to work with the MOEA and other government agencies to research and discuss measures to make further improvements as per the Chamber's recommendations.

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