Taiwan and China Entering Substantiated Industrial Cooperation This Year

Following two years of exchange and discussion, Taiwan will carry out substantiated industrial cooperation with China under the auspices of cross-Taiwan Strait Bridges Building Project from this year, with its sights set especially on business opportunities associated with China`s 12th five-year economic plan.

Specifically, Taiwan has zeroed in on such items as the Internet and cloud computing in the communications sector, as well as LED lighting, foodstuff, and precision logistics in the industrial sector, which together involve trillions of NT dollars of business opportunities. Taiwan representatives will propose cross-Strait cooperation in those fields during a meeting for Bridges Building Project, a platform for cross-Strait industrial cooperation and exchange, in March.

In a report delivered at a meeting of the Executive Yuan the Cabinet yesterday Jan. 6 Wu Min-chi, director of the Department of Industrial Technology, the Ministry of Economic Affairs MOEA pointed out that the Bridges Building Project will enter the stage of substantiated cooperation this year, the third year for the project, following the stage of exchange in the first year and the stage of discussion in the second.

Taiwan is especially keen on tapping the massive business opportunities to be set loose by China`s 12th five-year plan, which will be implemented from this year. The objective to expand the extent of urbanization to 55% during the five-year period, from 47% now, will generate massive business opportunities worth several trillions of NT dollars.

Huge Internet-related business opportunities will also derive from the increasing e-operation in Chinese cities. The trend will also give birth to huge need for database and other cloud-computing service.

Wu Min-chi revealed that Taiwan and China have selected LED lighting, wireless communications, foodstuff and precision logistics as focal areas for cross-Strait industrial cooperation. One project is installation, via cross-Strait cooperation, of 50,000 LED street lights in Xiamen and Guangzhou.

Both sides will also join hands in installing wireless communications infrastructure in Ningbo and Chengdu. They will also cooperate in foodstuff administration and precision logistics in some cities, possibly Tianjin and Xiamen, such as criteria for food quality, food safety and certification, urban logistics and delivery, and the application and promotion of ICT information-communications technology