Jakarta (Indonesia Window) – Taiwan is commemorating the 110th national day which falls on October 10, 2021.

At the same time, the bilateral relations between Taiwan and Indonesia continue to strengthen through the joint efforts of both sides, Head of the Taipei Economic and Trade Office (TETO) John Chen said in a written statement received on Monday (Oct. 11) in commemoration of Taiwan's national day which also known as Double Ten Day.

Taiwan is Indonesia's 10th largest trade partner and 9th largest source of foreign direct investment in 2020, he noted.

“In recent years, in order to restructure the industrial supply chain, many internationally renowned Taiwanese companies, including Meiloon Industry, Pegatron Corporation, Kenda Rubber, Walsin Lihwa, etc., have accelerated their relocation from China to Indonesia,” he said.

“Having said so, I am convinced that the prospects for further cooperation in various areas between Taiwan and Indonesia are full of great potentials,” Chen added.

Since the implementation of the New Southbound Policy in 2016, he continued, the Taiwanese government has spared no efforts in promoting bilateral cooperation in various aspects with Indonesia.

To date, the two sides have signed a total of 20 memorandum of understandings and action plans, aiming to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the fields such as trade and economic development, labor, agriculture, human resource development, education and training, civil aviation, science and technology, etc.

“What makes us even more gratifying is that we see people-to-people relations between Taiwan and Indonesia are growing and getting closer because of the New Southbound Policy,” head of TETO said.

Nowadays, more than 300,000 Indonesians work, study and live in Taiwan, making Taiwan the third major overseas destination for Indonesian diaspora.

“And I must emphasize that Indonesians in Taiwan are well taken care of and enjoy fair treatments and protection under Taiwan’s social welfare and medical care system,” Chen highlighted.

Despite the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, there are still more than 13,800 Indonesian students studying in Taiwan, making Indonesia the country with the third-highest number of students in Taiwan.

The various scholarships and training programs provided by Taiwan are in line with the policy goal of improving human resources" advocated by the Indonesian President Joko Widodo.

Meanwhile, in the agricultural cooperation, Taiwan began agricultural cooperation with Indonesia in 1976, and Taiwan Technical Mission (TTM) has been here in Indonesia for over 45 years.

“In the past 45 years, TTM has hosted and executed many agricultural initiatives ranging from aquaculture, rice production, horticulture, agribusiness and farmers’ cooperatives all over Indonesia. All of these projects have achieved concrete and sustainable results, and have brought tremendous benefits to hundreds and thousands of Indonesian farmers,” Chen said.

At present, TTM continues to implement the agribusiness incubator project in Bandung area (West Java province), the horticulture development project in Karawang (West Java province), and the high-quality rice seed production project in Southern Sulawesi.

In the future, Taiwan is also interested in sharing its expertise and experience with Indonesia in promoting food production in terms of better quality and greater quantity, so as to address the issue of food shortage caused by the pandemic.

“In conclusion, let me emphasize that the COVID-19 pandemic may cause temporary impact on travelling between Taiwan and Indonesia, but it cannot stop us from manifesting our passions towards each other, nor can it hinder us from closer bilateral corporations between our two countries.  And I believe that, by working closely together, we will defeat the pandemic,” Chen said.

Reporting by Indonesia Window