ECCT stresses building resilience at Europe Day Dinner
ECCT stresses building resilience at Europe Day Dinner
The European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan (ECCT) called for greater cooperation with the government in order to build greater resilience in the economy and society. In his speech at the annual Europe Day Dinner, ECCT Chairman Giuseppe Izzo stressed the need for cooperation to strengthen resilience needed in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The dinner was attended by over 700 distinguished guests including President Tsai Ying-wen, Filip Grzegorzewski, Head of the European Union’s (EU) European Economic and Trade Office (EETO) in Taiwan, senior government officials and executives from European and Taiwanese companies. At the dinner, speeches were given by President Tsai, the EETO head and the ECCT chairman. This year’s dinner celebrated the 70th anniversary of the Schumann Declaration in 1950, which paved the way for the creation of what has evolved into today's European Union.
In his speech at the dinner, ECCT Chairman Giuseppe Izzo praised President Tsai and her administration for their enlightened leadership and rapid, proactive and pragmatic actions, which had helped Taiwan to avoid the worst impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. However, he went on to say that despite these efforts, given that the pandemic is not yet over, business and government have a responsibility to build a more resilient economy and society.
The chairman lauded Taiwan’s healthcare system and officials for their exceptional performance during the pandemic. However, he pointed out that Taiwan’s spending on healthcare, at around 6% of GDP compared to around 9% in OECD countries, means that patients sometimes do not get access to advanced healthcare solutions being introduced in other countries that are necessary for an ageing population and an increase in chronic diseases. To improve the resilience of the healthcare system he urged additional investments in disease prevention, treatments and other preparations for possible future pandemics and more flexible business models to increase private sector involvement in healthcare. He went on to reiterate the ECCT’s support for Taiwan’s meaningful participation in the World Health Organisation.
This chairman noted that the current crisis also offers a great opportunity to help international companies diversify and strengthen their supply chains by investing in Taiwan. However, the post-Covid-19 economy and supply chain realignment will rely on more than capital. Taiwan needs to continue to support and follow international standards and best practices if it is to attract the best international companies, he said. This will be helped by the government’s ongoing efforts to create a bilingual nation and the promotion of English fluency in education, government and the private sector.
In addition, he said that more could be done to attract a more diverse range of foreign talent, such as simplifying current recruitment incentive programmes and immigration regulations. He also reiterated that removing the remaining instances of unequal treatment of foreign residents would make foreigners feel more welcome and thereby help to attract and retain foreign talent. Furthermore, in order to foster an environment for building a resilient and dynamic workforce, Taiwan’s labour laws need reforms that take into account the complexities of both modern workplaces and remote working.
On the subject of the environment, the chairman went on to outline some actions that could help to limit the damage from climate change, especially speeding up decarbonisation and working towards creating a completely circular economy. He noted that green energy represents and huge opportunity for Taiwan to provide energy security, reduce pollution and create a whole new high value industry in Taiwan. But micromanaging the process risks derailing local industry development. For this reason, he urged the government to allow the local industry to develop organically and ensure that local content requirements are flexible and adaptable to changing industry trends and standards.
Along with green energy, further electrification of the transport and industrial sectors will greatly reduce Taiwan’s carbon emissions, according to the chairman. A successful energy transition will require a roadmap with annual targets for a nationwide electric vehicle charging system that is aligned with international standards. In addition, technologies such as hybrids, fuel cells and renewable synthetic fuels have significant potential. And to compensate for wind and solar fluctuations, smart grids and grid balancing technologies using hydrogen, liquid air or battery storage systems are also necessary, he said.
The chairman concluded that Taiwan has built a strong foundation to protect the health and livelihoods of its people but that Taiwan’s future prosperity depends on strengthening resilience at home and maintaining strong links with the world, especially with Europeans and European businesses given that they have played a crucial role in Taiwan’s development and have the potential to help build additional resilience in a post-Covid-19 world.
About the ECCT
With over US$58 billion in direct foreign investments, European businesses are collectively the largest group of foreign investors in Taiwan. The European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan is the largest foreign nationwide business chamber in Taiwan and the principal organisation promoting European business interests in Taiwan. The chamber represents over 900 members from 400 companies and organisations. Through a network of 30 industry and support committees, the ECCT has been successful in addressing specific concerns and providing concrete recommendations to all levels of government to facilitate improving the business environment. The ECCT’s annual position papers comprise issues identified by its committees as hindering the further development of their respective industries and provide recommendations to the government of Taiwan for improvement of the business environment on general issues as well as industry-specific problems. They also serve to keep the European Commission and parliament as well as the governments of individual European countries informed about Taiwan’s business environment.
歐洲在臺商務協會（ECCT）呼籲與政府擴大對外合作，使臺灣經濟與社會體系更加茁壯
歐洲商會理事長尹容在年度「歐洲日」晚宴上發表說時，強調合作的必要性，才能在新冠 肺炎疫情過後，增強臺灣亟需的韌性。今年的晚宴有超過七百位貴賓出席，包括總統蔡英文，歐盟在臺歐洲經貿辦事處處長高哲夫，政府高階官員，及歐洲與臺灣企業的主管。蔡英文總統、高哲夫處長及尹容理事長分別發表演說。今年的晚宴是1950年「舒曼宣言」發表七十周年慶，而這項宣言也為歐盟的發韌進展到今天的格局鋪下了光明坦途。
尹容理事長在晚宴演說中，盛讚蔡英文總統及政府清明的領導能力，並採取迅速、主動且務實的行動，使臺灣得以免受新冠肺炎帶來的最嚴峻衝擊。但他也強調，儘管各界戮力以赴，但基於肺炎疫情迄未結束，企業界與政府仍有責任來建立更強韌的經濟與社會體系。
尹容理事長為臺灣的醫療保健體系及政府官員在疫情期間的突出表現喝采。不過他也指出，臺灣的醫療保健支出占國內生產毛額（GDP）的6%，而經濟合作暨發展組織（OECD）國家則約為9%，這意味臺灣的病人有時候未能跟其他國家一樣，得到先進的醫療照護，而這正是高齡人口與慢性疾病患者所需要的。為提昇醫療保健體系的應變能力，他要求臺灣針對未來可能發生的傳染病，加強疾病預防、醫療投資及其他準備工作，並且採取更彈性的商業模式，以促進民間部門參與醫療保健業務。他並重申，歐洲商會支持臺灣實質參與世界衛生組織（WHO）。
尹容理事長強調，當前的危機也提供臺灣一次絕佳的機會，協助國際性企業在臺灣投資，以分散營運據點，並強化供應鏈。不過疫情過後的經濟情勢與供應鏈重組，所依賴的將不只是資金而已。他表示，臺灣如果想要吸引最佳的國際企業來臺，就必須繼續支持及遵循國際標準及最佳慣例。這有賴於政府持續努力，締造臺灣成為雙語國家，並且在教育、政府及民間部門推廣英語能力。
此外，臺灣還應該更加努力吸引多種的外籍人才，例如簡化現行的獎勵雇用計畫及移民法規。他並重申，取消對外籍居民不平等待遇，讓外籍人士感覺自己更受歡迎，從而有助於吸引及留住外籍人才。再者，為了使臺灣的環境更有利於營造彈性且動能十足的勞動力，勞工相關法律亟需改革，並因應現代工作場所與遠距工作等新興的職場型態。
在環保主題方面，尹容理事長再度列舉出多項有助於限制氣候變遷損害的行動，尤其是加速「去碳化」，朝向締造完全循環的經濟而努力。他強調，綠能對臺灣而言是一大機會，可提供能源安全，降低汙染，並創造出一項全新的高價值產業。但如果管理失當，卻可能使國內的綠能產業發展脫軌。基於這項理由，尹容建議政府允許國內業界做有機性地發展，保證讓自製率規定更有彈性，並能隨著產業趨勢與標準的改變而調適。
尹容理事長並表示，伴隨著綠能的發展，交通與工業部門若能進一步電氣化，將能使臺灣的碳排放量大幅減少。成功的能源轉型，需要對全國電動車充電系統的設立訂定年度目標計畫，並與國際標準接軌。此外，諸如油電混合車、燃料電池與再生合成燃料等科技，都擁有雄厚潛力。他表示，為彌補風力與太陽能不夠穩定的缺陷，也需要發展智慧型電網與電網平衡科技，搭配水力、液化天然氣或電池貯存系統。
尹容理事長在結論中指出，臺灣已經建立了保護人民健康與生活的堅強基礎，但臺灣未來的繁榮仍有賴於強化國內經濟環境，並與世界維持密切的連結，尤其是歐洲及歐洲企業，已經在臺灣的發展過程中扮演了舉足輕重的角色，未來更有能力協助臺灣在疫情過後更具競爭力。
關於歐洲在臺商務協會
歐洲企業一直是臺灣最主要的外商投資來源，其直接投資規模超過500億美元。歐洲在臺商務協會 (歐洲商會) 的創建宗旨，在於促進歐洲企業在臺之利益。歐洲商會的會員約有900位，分別來自400家公司與機構。透過30個產業與特別委員會形成的關係網，歐洲商會已成功因應不同產業的特殊議題，為各級政府提供改善臺灣經商環境的具體建言。歐洲商會每年均提出一系列的建議書，內容涵蓋各委員會提出有礙自身產業進一步發展的議題，亦針對一般議題與各產業的特有問題，向臺灣政府提出多項改善經商環境的建言。建議書亦協助歐洲執行委員會、歐洲議會與歐盟各會員國政府瞭解臺灣的經商環境。
