On 29 November the ECCT held its Annual General Meeting. At the meeting ECCT members voted in new boards of directors and supervisors for 2014. The boards will serve a one-year term. Giuseppe Izzo, General Manager of STMicroelectronics will serve as Chairman of the ECCT's board of directors in 2014 for the second consecutive year.

In his annual report to members at the AGM, ECCT Chairman Giuseppe Izzo reported that 2013 was a very successful year for the chamber. "The chamber regularly engaged with the Executive Yuan throughout the year, helping to further promote members' business interests. Membership rose to over 800 individual members and the quality and participation at events remained very high," he said. In addition, the chamber successfully completed the transition to a nationwide association and began expanding its outreach to local governments across Taiwan. This included face to face meetings and other activities with the mayors and city governments of Taichung, Tainan, Taoyuan County and Kaohsiung.

The chairman reported that 2013 was another very active year for the chamber. Over 140 meetings with government, committees, and Premium Events were held, attracting close to 4,000 attendees, which is an increase over last year. High profile activities during the year included the 25th anniversary and inauguration of the chamber as a nationwide association, the Europe Day dinner and the Low Carbon Initiative's conference co-hosted together with the Tainan City Government. There were also a number of other Premium Events which attracted high profile guest speakers. In addition, the chamber hosted a number of cultural and social events. This included the very popular gala ball, a Hungarian wine culture lunch, wine tasting dinners and a performance by the Taipei Symphony Orchestra.

The chamber held a number of meetings with senior government officials as well as dozens of meetings with working level officials. In March, the chamber held its annual meeting with the Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) to discuss the government's official response to the 2013 Position Papers. CEPD Minister Kuan Chung-ming also attended the launch of the 2014 Position Papers in November. In September, an ECCT delegation met with Premier Jiang Yi-huah and other senior government officials at the ECCT's annual meeting with the Executive Yuan. Thanks to the ECCT's excellent relations with the government, the chamber saw a much higher level of progress compared to the previous year. Of the issues raised in the 2013 Position Papers, over 25% of issues were either successfully resolved or saw progress towards resolution compared to less than 14% last year.

Besides its relations with the Taiwan government, the ECCT has maintained excellent relations and frequently consults with representatives from the European Economic and Trade Office (EETO) & trade offices of individual EU member states in Taiwan. An ECCT delegation will travel to Brussels, Belgium for its annual Open Door Mission meetings with the European Commission members of parliament, European trade and industry groups as well as think tanks from 16-18 December.

In 2013, the ECCT continued to maintain regular contact with the regional European Business Organization's (EBO) World Wide Network. ECCT CEO Freddie Hoeglund attended two series of EBO meetings this year, one in Brussels and the second in Yangon, Myanmar from 13-15 November. The EBO meetings in Myanmar coincided with the EU-Myanmar Task Force from the European Union headed by Baroness Catherine Ashton, European Commission Vice President and High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. The EU-Myanmar task force was attended by top-level European officials including European Commission Vice President Antonio Tajani among others.

2014 Board of Directors

Chairman
Giuseppe Izzo, General Manager, STMicroelectronics

Other directors (in alphabetical order)
Bernd Barkey, Managing Director, Robert Bosch Taiwan
Helmut Bolt, Chief Representative, ThyssenKrupp AG Representative Office Taiwan
Derrick Chan, Deputy Chairman/Managing Director, Swire Group Taiwan / Taikoo Motors, Taiwan Branch
Godwin Chang, Chief Country Officer, Société Générale Taipei Branch
H Henry Chang, Principal, Baker & McKenzie
Debby Cheng, Managing Director, Hermes Asia Pacific (Taiwan Branch)
Erdal Elver, President & CEO, Siemens Limited Taiwan
Uwe Halstenbach, General Manager, TÜV Rheinland Taiwan
Daver Lau, General Manager, AMADEUS Taiwan
Vivian Lo, General Manager, Taiwan & Korea, Cathay Pacific Airways
Rufus Parkinson, Managing Director, Moët Hennessy Taiwan
Olivier Rousselet, Country Manager, BNP Paribas Taiwan
Peter Sutton, Head of Research, Credit Agricole Securities (Taiwan)
Francine Wu, CEO, Schroder Investment Management (Taiwan)

Alternate Directors (in order of election)
1st: Eng Leong Goh, Managing Director, BASF Taiwan
2nd: Jan Jovy, Managing Director, Melchers Trading GmbH, Taiwan Branch
3rd: Philip Tseng, President, Ericsson Taiwan
4th: Peter Trampe, Country Manager, ISS Facility Services Taiwan

2014 Board of Supervisors (in alphabetical order)

Peter Huizing, General Manager, Heineken Brouwerijen BV Taiwan Branch
Nathan Kaiser, Attorney at Law, Eiger
Daniel Khoo, Managing Director, Audi Taiwan
Martin Lindström, CEO, DFI Home Furnishings Taiwan Limited (IKEA)
David Raymond, Managing Director, CHANEL

Alternate Supervisor
Jim Hill, General Manager, Santa Fe Relocation Service Taiwan