Taiwan and the U.S. announced the intention to jointly support the establishment of a subfund on women and the economy under the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, according to James Soong, representative of President Tsai Ing-wen, at the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting Nov. 18 in Lima, Peru.
The initiative, which was revealed by Soong and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at a breakfast function marking the fifth anniversary of the San Francisco Declaration on Women and the Economy, will enable APEC’s 21 members to apply for funding to support new or existing projects on women’s economic empowerment.
The subfund, created on the basis of mutual trust between Taipei and Washington, is another concrete example of Taiwan’s meaningful participation in and contribution to the international community, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Soong also took the opportunity to update function attendees such as Mercedes Rosalba Araoz Fernandez, second vice president of Peru, and Scott Price, chairman of the U.S. National Center for APEC, on Taiwan’s efforts unlocking the full economic potential of women and ensuring their integration in the regional economy.
According to the MOFA, the subfund will promote the key pillars outlined in the APEC Policy Partnership on Women and the Economy as impacting women’s economic empowerment. These are capital and market access, skills and capacity building, women’s leadership and agency, and innovation and technology.
Taiwan has made tremendous headway in promoting women’s economic and political participation, as well as eliminating sexual violence, the ministry said, adding that these accomplishments have helped advance APEC’s core goals and are highly recognized by the global community.
Since joining APEC in 1991, Taiwan has championed the regional economic forum’s initiatives and projects. Some of its high-profile undertakings include proposing in 2012 the Innovation for Women and Economic Development, a three-year project aimed at bridging economic and gender development through promoting value-added services of information and communication technology.
Women’s empowerment is also a key area for collaboration under the Global Cooperation and Training Framework, which Taiwan and the U.S. jointly initiated in June 2015 with a memorandum of understanding. The framework allows the two sides to cooperate in addressing global issues such as education, energy, environmental protection, humanitarian assistance, public health, regional development and technology. (SFC-E)
Write to Taiwan Today at ttonline@mofa.gov.tw