The European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan (ECCT) released its 2024 Position Papers today. Through the theme "Setting a Course for Economic Revival," the papers offer specific recommendations to help revive the economy under current challenging circumstances.

The launch was held at an ECCT Premium Event lunch today where ECCT Chairman Giuseppe Izzo officially handed over a copy of the chamber's annual publication to the Taiwan government, represented by National Development Council (NDC) Minister Kung Ming-hsin. This year's publication includes separate submissions from 25 of the ECCT's industry and support committees and raises 175 issues, 108 from previous years and 67 new issues.

In his presentation to NDC Minister Kung and ECCT members at the launch, Chairman Izzo acknowledged the government's efforts that has led to progress on over 20%* of the issues raised the previous year. He went on to give a summary of the Position Paper Overview and highlight some of the major issues facing ECCT members.

Summary of the 2024 Position Paper Overview
Taiwan's economy is facing headwinds and choppy seas and the outlook for 2024 is uncertain. Under these circumstances, Taiwan needs to chart a course for economic revival that avoids the worst of the conditions that are beyond its control, remove regulatory constraints, revise unsuitable laws and regulations and streamline administrative procedures. The Overview highlights issues and recommendations in three main areas: energy, talent and internationalisation.

Choosing a smoother energy transition pathway
Taiwan boasts some of the world's best conditions for wind and solar energy but the key missing ingredient to a successful energy transition is an enabling environment.

Prioritising renewable energy capacity expansion: The installation of renewable energy capacity in Taiwan has fallen behind official targets mainly due to local content requirements, regulatory red-tape, and difficulties in financing.

The chamber recommends revising localisation rules to encourage local supply chain competitiveness and much better coordination of policy and implementation between the various government agencies at the central and municipal level to expedite the development of all viable types of renewable energy. This should start with a radical streamlining of the permitting process, including establishing green zones for renewable development, simplified repowering rules to replace outdated turbines and comprehensive planning for port and grid infrastructure to support future projects.

Supporting the transition to electric mobility: To hasten the transition to electric mobility, the ECCT recommends removing regulatory bottlenecks that are slowing down the building of charging infrastructure as well as financial incentives to consumers to switch to electric vehicles (EVs).

Expanding the talent pool
Taiwan continues to face shortages of skilled and semi-skilled workers due to shifting demographics, overly restrictive labour, visa and work permit rules and insufficient incentives to attract foreign talent.

Promoting family friendly policies: To address Taiwan's shrinking birthrate, the chamber recommends measures to reduce the financial burden and improve the work-life balance of young parents, such as offering more flexible options for remote work, allowing employees to choose to work from home as an alternative to unpaid parental leave, and by building or subsidising the building of more childcare facilities.   

Appropriate labour laws for the modern workforce: The chamber recommends reforms to outdated labour laws regarding working hours and attendance records and to accommodate the trend towards flexible working from anywhere.

More flexible visa and work permit regulations: The ECCT recommends revising visa and work permit regulations and procedures with the aim of making it easier for skilled foreigners to enter, live and work in Taiwan.

Fair treatment of foreign residents: The chamber advises addressing all issues of unequal treatment, especially for permanent residents, to make Taiwan more attractive to foreign talent as well as relaxing requirements to apply for dual nationality, making the point that offering citizenship status to a broader range of foreigners would increase Taiwan's attractiveness to foreign talent and help to alleviate Taiwan's population decline.

Increasing internationalisation

Adopting international standards: The position papers list a number of instances where Taiwan deviates from international standards and best practices. In each instance, the chamber advises that adopting the latest international standards would benefit businesses, both those serving the Taiwan market and those geared towards foreign markets.

Increasing transparency: The papers list several cases where administrative requirements and procedures lack clarity or a clear purpose. For example, there are variations in the way draft regulations are announced, the length of review periods, the effective date of implementation and the length of grace periods.

This could be avoided if authorities were to conduct regulatory impact assessments (RIAs) and hold consultations with stakeholders during the drafting process of regulations and to always follow standard implementation procedures. This would ensure that all legislation and regulations have a clear purpose and are expressed in clear and unambiguous language and are implemented without causing disruptions in the marketplace. In cases where regulations cause unforeseen negative consequences after the fact, the ECCT recommends that authorities make adjustments in a timely manner.

Expanding digitalisation: Despite steady progress towards digitalisation, the papers list several examples of procedures which require people to be present in person and submit documents in hard copy form. To improve efficiency in the use of both time and resources, the ECCT recommends that government agencies expedite efforts to enable digital options for administrative procedures wherever practical.

Improving bilingualism: The government has made progress in translating policies, legislation, regulations, rulings, or public announcements into English. However, this process is incomplete. Meanwhile, there is room for improvement in the level of English proficiency of government ministries and officials at all levels. This could be remedied by providing comprehensive English training to all government officials and by making English proficiency a key component in promotion criteria.

Pursuing international trade deals: The ECCT continues to support the government's efforts to pursue international trade agreements, such as an EU-Taiwan Bilateral Investment Agreement (BIA), on the grounds that a BIA and ongoing efforts to address non-tariff barriers, would boost economic growth and create jobs in both Europe and Taiwan, and help to attract the talent and investment needed to maintain Taiwan's competitiveness despite challenging global circumstances.

Conclusion
With a diverse economy, deep talent pool and advantages in key technologies, Taiwan is well placed to deal with challenging headwinds in the global economy. However, there is more the government could do to help steer Taiwan in the right direction and to increase the resilience and agility needed to deal with adverse circumstances. Charting a course for economic revival will require setting the right policy priorities and making reforms and adjustments to policies.

The Overview concludes that following the recommendations in the position papers would help Taiwan to deal effectively with the current global economic challenges, advance the energy transition, enhance Taiwan's attractiveness to talent, increase Taiwan's internationalisation, strengthen resilience and speed up Taiwan's economic revival.

*This percentage also includes progress made during the position paper production process, which is not reflected in the position papers.

 

歐洲商會「2024年建議書」：20%議題獲進展成果亮眼 盼政府大力振興經濟

歐洲商會（ECCT）今天發布2024年建議書，以「籌擘經濟振興之道」為主軸，提出具體建言，以助台灣有效因應當前全球經濟挑戰，加速台灣經濟復甦。

今年歐洲商會建議書發表會，理事長尹容(Giuseppe Izzo)於會上正式遞交建議書給台灣政府代表國發會主委龔明鑫。建議書議題分別由25個歐洲商會的產業及委員會提出，合計175個問題，其中108個問題是以往所提，另外67項則為新議題。

尹容理事長在演說中特別感謝台灣政府對去年歐洲商會提出的議題積極回應，目前已經約有20%的進展，並且向龔明鑫主委及歐洲商會的成員說明今年建議書的概論，進一步強調目前商會成員面臨到的主要問題。

歐洲商會於1994年首次向台灣政府發表建議書，29年來，歐洲商會每年提出的建議書，均深受政府重視，以2019年至2023年為例，歐洲商會建議書提出的議題，合計有38項獲得成功解決，59項有充分進展無須再提出，成果十分豐碩。歷任總統每年均出席歐洲日晚宴，聆聽會員建言，以蔡英文總統為例，上任以來已八次出席。2024年建議書亦於12月由尹容理事長與何飛逸執行長赴布魯塞爾遞交歐盟，協助歐洲執行委員會、歐洲議會與歐盟各會員國政府瞭解台灣的經商環境。

2024建議書概論
台灣經濟正面臨著風雨飄搖的局勢，2024年的前景充滿不確定性。在這種情況下，台灣需要制定一條經濟復甦的路線，避免陷入無法控制的狀況，消除法規上的限制，修訂不合適的法律規範，並簡化行政程序。在概論中強調了三個主要的問題：能源、人才和國際化。

選擇更平穩的能源轉型之路
台灣擁有全球最佳的風力和太陽能發電條件，然而要成功實現能源轉型，關鍵的一環就是創造一個有利的環境。

優先擴大再生能源產能
台灣的再生能源裝機容量落後於官方目標，主因為國產化要求、相關繁文縟節的規定及融資困難。

商會呼籲政府應修訂國產化的規定，鼓勵本地供應鏈提升競爭力。同時，中央與地方各級政府機關之間，在政策協調和執行上需更進一步協同合作，以加速各種可行的可再生能源的發展。首先應徹底簡化許可流程，包括建立再生能源發展綠色區域、簡化重新供電規則以汰換老舊風機，以及對港口和電網基礎設施進行全面規畫，支持日後推行的項目。

支持轉型推行電動交通方式
為了加速推動電動交通方式的發展，商會建議消除阻礙建設充電基礎設施的法規瓶頸，以促使更多充電基礎設施的建設。同時，提倡推出改為電動車的經濟獎勵措施，以鼓勵消費者轉向電動車。

擴大人才庫
人口結構變化、過於嚴格的勞工法規，再加上吸引外國人才的獎勵措施不足，台灣仍然面臨著技術和半技術勞工短缺的問題。

推行家庭友善政策
為因應臺灣不斷下降的出生率，歐洲商會提出多項建議，以減輕年輕父母的經濟負擔並改善工作與生活中的平衡，其中包括提供更彈性的遠距工作選擇，允許員工選擇在家工作，作為無薪育嬰假的替代方案，以及透過提供津貼或稅務獎勵，鼓勵企業在工作場所提供兒童照護空間和設施。

適合現代勞動力的勞動法規
歐洲商會建議修改過時的勞動法規，以配合遠距工作的趨勢，讓員工更有彈性的工作。

更有彈性的簽證和工作許可證規定
歐洲商會建議修訂簽證及工作許可的現行法規和程序，以便有技術的外國人得以在台灣生活和工作。

確保平等對待
歐洲商會建議，台灣當局應積極解決各項不平等待遇問題，例如65歲以上永居證長者，無法享有搭乘大眾運輸工具半票優惠，甚至身障也無法取得殘障手冊，使用殘障車位…政府應致力於打造一個更具吸引力的環境，以吸引外國人才。同時，建議放寬雙重國籍的申請程序，使其更簡化。透過實行標準化和客觀的申請程序，擴大外國人取得公民身分的範圍，將有助於提升台灣對外國人才的吸引力，同時有助於緩和台灣人口減少的問題。

國際化程度日深

採行國際標準
建議書中列舉了多個台灣在國際標準和最佳實踐方面存在差異的情況。對於每一個案例，歐洲商會建議台灣採用最新的國際標準，以使在台灣市場運作或面向國際市場的企業都能夠受益。

提高透明度
建議書中提出了一些行政要求和程序缺乏明確性的情況，例如，公布法規草案的方式、審查期的長短、生效日期與寬限期的長短都存在差異。

若台灣當局在制定法規的過程中進行法規政策影響評估（RIAs），並與利益相關者進行磋商，同時始終遵循標準的實施程序，將有助於避免這種情況的發生。這將確保所有的法律和法規都有明確的目的，並以清晰明確的語言表達。在法規實施後，如果出現意外的負面後果，歐洲商會建議當局應及時進行調整。

擴大數位化
在積極推進數位轉型的進程中，儘管已取得了穩定進展，建議書中指出，仍有多項程序需要親自到場辦理，並以紙本形式提交文件。為提高時間和資源的有效利用，歐洲商會強烈建議政府機關在實際可行的情況下，加速推動行政程序的數位化。

提高雙語能力
政府在將政策、法規、法令、裁決或公告翻譯成英文方面已取得一定進展，但這項工作尚未完全完成。與此同時，政府各部門和官員在英文能力方面仍有提升的空間。這可以透過為所有政府官員提供全面的英文培訓以及將英文能力納入晉升標準的關鍵要素來加以改善。

尋求國際貿易交易
歐洲商會持續支持政府努力尋求國際貿易協議，其中包括歐盟－台灣雙邊投資協議 (BIA)。歐洲商會認為，簽署 BIA並積極處理非關稅障礙，將促進歐洲和台灣的經濟增長，創造就業機會，有助於吸引所需的人才和投資，從而在全球環境嚴峻的情況下保持台灣的競爭力。

結論
憑藉著多元化的經濟體、豐富的人才庫和關鍵技術優勢，台灣在多變的全球經濟環境中具備卓越的發展潛力。然而，鑑於面對的挑戰規模和深度，政府可以採取更多作為，引領台灣朝著正確的方向前進，提升應對不利環境所需的韌性和靈活性。 實現經濟復甦的道路需要確立正確的政策優先事項，並進行必要的政策改革和調整。

歐洲商會堅信，建議書中的建議將有助於台灣有效因應當前全球經濟挑戰，推動能源轉型，提升台灣對專業人才的吸引力，加強國際化水準，同時強化應對多變世界情勢的韌性，進而加速台灣的經濟復甦。

進展百分比是在建議書編排期間而有所變動，故此百分比與建議書上所寫不同。