The government has been diversifying export markets for agricultural products in response to China’s economic suppression, Vice President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday.
Lai, the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) presidential candidate, made the remark while meeting participants of this year’s Young Agricultural Ambassadors Exchange Program — part of the New Southbound Policy — and International Youth Ambassadors Exchange Program at the Presidential Office in Taipei.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has been promoting the New Southbound Policy since taking office to develop closer trade and economic relations with countries in the region, he said.
Photo: CNA
REACHING OUT
The total trade volume between Taiwan and New Southbound countries has grown from US$95.8 billion in 2016 to about US$180 billion last year, an 88 percent increase, he said.
China, which used to be the biggest export destination for Taiwan’s agricultural products, has often imposed arbitrary bans on such goods in the past few years, especially before Taiwan’s elections, he said.
The bans are often lifted after candidates of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) visit China, he added.
In response, the government has been expanding agricultural exports to countries such as Australia, Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea and the US, he said.
Last year, the US became the largest export market for Taiwan’s agricultural products, while Japan was the largest export market for Taiwan’s fruits, Lai said.
The high quality of Taiwan’s agricultural products is recognized internationally, he added.
The 24 New Southbound agricultural ambassadors were split into two groups that visited Indonesia and the Philippines in October and last month respectively, while the 40 international ambassadors visited Saint Lucia in September.
‘PEOPLE DIPLOMACY’
Lai thanked the ambassadors for fulfilling the government’s “people diplomacy” mission, making Taiwan better known in the countries they visited and showing them the energy of young Taiwanese.
The visits to Indonesia and the Philippines are particularly important for Taiwan as they are Indo-Pacific countries, he said.
Food security has become an issue of global concern as the world is facing the challenges posed by climate change, he said.
Maintaining agricultural exchanges and cooperation with major food-producing countries in the region would benefit Taiwan, he said.
Meanwhile, Saint Lucia, an important diplomatic ally, has been voicing strong support for the nation in international organizations, he said.
With the shared values of democracy, freedom and human rights, Lai said that Taiwan and the Caribbean ally could foster even closer ties.
He hopes to launch a fund to support more young Taiwanese to travel overseas to learn about other countries and come up with ideas to work together with them, which would greatly help Taiwan’s development and society, he said.
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