The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said it is seeking a new location to establish an international non-governmental organization (INGO) center, aiming to attract more INGOs to Taiwan and strengthen unofficial diplomacy.
Department of Non-governmental Organizations Director Charlie Chiang (江振瑋) said the ministry has been encouraging INGOs to open offices in Taiwan since 2020.
Over the past five years, the ministry has helped 13 INGOs do so, and is in contact with another 37 to explore the possibility, he said during the ministry’s weekly news briefing.
Photo: CNA
A previous INGO center opened in March 2018 in Taichung’s Wufeng District (霧峰), but it is no longer operational due to funding shortfalls, he said.
The renovated building that once housed the previous INGO center now rents out office space.
The ministry is evaluating several potential sites for a new center, which has to be large enough to accommodate multiple INGO offices should more organizations choose to establish a presence in Taiwan, Chiang said.
Once a location is selected, the ministry plans to allocate funding for the center’s construction and opening in its fiscal year 2026 budget, he said.
Supporting INGOs in setting up offices in Taiwan is a key part of promoting “track two,” or unofficial, diplomacy, he added.
To further encourage their presence, the ministry also plans to offer one-year rent subsidies and has been streamlining administrative procedures to make the process easier, he said.
Previously, the head of an INGO — typically a foreign national — was required to obtain residency in Taiwan before they could apply to establish an office.
However, a regulatory revision now allows them to apply to open an INGO office beforehand, provided they have the ministry’s endorsement, Chiang said.
In addition, the financial threshold for foreign foundations to open offices in Taiwan has been lowered, with the minimum asset requirement reduced from NT$30 million (US$999,833) to NT$15 million, making it more accessible for smaller organizations, he said.
The ministry has also set up a bilingual Web site https://www.taiwanngo.tw to provide a one-stop service to help INGOs apply to open an office in Taiwan, he added.
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