Published Date: 2021-09-08
Minister without
Portfolio John Deng and Economics Minister Wang Mei-hua have touted the success
of the government’s New Southbound Policy in boosting trade and investment.
The New Southbound
Policy is the Tsai Ing-wen administration’s pivot to Taiwan’s neighbors to the
south: Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Australia and New Zealand.
During a forum on
the policy held Wednesday, Minister without Portfolio John Deng said Taiwanese
companies in these regions are involved in a broad range of sectors. These
include electronics, steel, finance, and food production. Deng said that under
the New Southbound Policy, Taiwanese companies will continue pumping in large
amounts of resources into the target regions, including non-trade related
resources such as skilled workers and medical resources.
Meanwhile,
Economics Minister Wang Mei-hua rebuffed criticism from some lawmakers, who
have pointed to a decline in trade volume between Taiwan and New Southbound
Policy target countries last year. She said that figures so far this year paint
a positive picture for Taiwanese exports to target regions, and that this is
the result of several years of Taiwanese investments in these areas.