GVI Holds Seminar on How can Taiwanese Industry Seize the Opportunity Along the Belt and Road Development

‘With the implementation of the Belt and Road initiative going deeper, many Taiwanese industry want to be the 'sharers' and 'co-builders' in this market instead of the 'bystanders'. Under the current cross-strait relations background, Taiwanese enterprises could bypass the cross-strait political stalemate and grasp the current Taiwan policy, integrate into the mainland China’s economy and industrial chain, and seize the opportunity to enter the Belt and Road market.’

Wang Zheng, an associate researcher at the School of International Studies at Sun Yat-Sen University and chairman of the Chinese Youth Development Union, put forward the above viewpoints on the July 11th  seminar, he believes that in the Belt and Road market, Taiwan has five major industrial opportunities such as infrastructure and smart cities, cross-border e-commerce, logistics industry, financial leasing and green energy.

On July 11th, the Grandview Institution and the China Youth Development Association held a seminar on ’How can Taiwanese Industry Seize the Opportunity Along the Belt and Road Development‘, and invited representatives from both sides to discuss ’how to integrate the Taiwanese industry into the Belt and Road market.‘

Chen Weide, a doctor of diplomacy at Taiwan’s political university and president of the Jiangxi Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan, indicates that traditional Taiwanese businessmen mainly do OEM and management, especially in parts processing, gifts, trade, bicycles and other industries, which inconsistent to the Belt and Road Initiative. Some Taiwanese companies are facing the confusion of industrial transformation and they need the Belt and Road initiative to seek business opportunities, especially cold chain logistics in the logistics industry.

Wang Youzhu, chairman of Qingda Youzhi Technology Consulting Co., Ltd 

‘Taiwan has strong competitiveness in national governance, think tank development, and corporate management, especially in terms of internationalization.’Wang Youzhu, chairman of Qingda Youzhi Technology Consulting Co., Ltd considers that mainland enterprises need to improve management level in recent years. He suggests mainland enterprises should visit Taiwan's Formosa Plastics, Asus and other companies to learn about international management. Taiwan's industrialized civilization surpasses the mainland in many aspects and has a high level of international standards. The mainland needs to use Taiwan's R&D capabilities and international integration capabilities to enhance the international competitiveness of mainland enterprises.

Dr. You Zhibin, Ph.D. of Xiamen University and Asia Pacific Taizhi Consulting Co., Ltd. 

Regarding how the Taiwan industry grasps the opportunities of the Belt and Road, Dr. You Zhibin, Ph.D. of Xiamen University and Asia Pacific Taizhi Consulting Co., Ltd., thinks that Taiwanese companies can focus on three major areas of finance, environmental protection for hazardous waste and medical treatment. The financial sector is divided into consumer finance, the Belt and Road logistics, supply chain finance, insurance business and financial technology innovation. Taiwanese companies can also use their technology and experience in environmentally-friendly disposal of hazardous waste, medical services and management to cooperate with mainland enterprises to serve the countries along the Belt and Road.

Mei Ruinan, The Taiwan Yellow Pages cross-border e-commerce platform founder 

‘In the past, 8,000 small and medium-sized Taiwanese enterprises engaged in beauty, food, mother-infant, and personal care industries encountered lots of resistance in the process of entering the mainland market. After the Belt and Road initiative, these small and medium-sized enterprises are eager to use this opportunity to strengthen cooperation with mainland cross-border e-commerce. If mainland cross-border e-commerce could train these 8,000 SMEs, it will be of great benefit to their development. Qingchuang project is one of the breakthrough points to achieve this cooperation. ’The Taiwan Yellow Pages cross-border e-commerce platform founder Mei Ruinan said.

Wang Min, assistant researcher at the Taiwan Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences 

‘Mainland  China welcomes Taiwan's industry to participate in the construction of the Belt and Road. However, due to political and other factors, many cooperation projects between the two sides have not been specifically implemented.' Wang Min, assistant researcher at the Taiwan Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, believes that the policy specialization is an issue that we need to solve urgently. Taiwanese businessmen are eager to take the Belt and Road initiative to seek their own development. What the two sides need to do is to build a bridge to turn this will into practice. Also, from the current political development logic of Taiwan, the official cooperation model between the two sides of the strait is difficult to achieve. It is necessary to strengthen the cooperation model between the official and private sector and the private to private sector to promote cross-strait industrial cooperation. At present, the advantages of Taiwan's industry compared with the mainland are more reflected in the aspects of design, operation and service, while the mainland is dominant in terms of capital.

Zhu Songling, director of the Institute of Cross-Strait Research at the Institute of Taiwan Studies at Beijing Union University, regards that how Taiwan's industry integrates into the Belt and Road is a major issue. Especially in the construction of the 'Maritime Silk Road', the potential for cross-strait cooperation is even greater.