On Aug. 17, 2015, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) led a 126-member delegation comprising academics, business executives, city councilors and officials to Shanghai, mainland China to attend the Taipei-Shanghai City Forum. Last year’s edition was particularly significant in that the number of Taiwanese delegates was more than double that of any previous iteration of the twin-city conference, with most of the attendees coming from the private sector.
The theme of the 2015 forum was “City Development and Youth Entrepreneurship.” Discussions were held on topics covering community medical services, culture and smart cities. As a result of the talks, four memorandums of understanding (MOU) were signed on Aug. 18 with the aim of promoting exchanges and cooperation in the fields of civil service personnel, city administration and electronic ticketing services. Collaboration on the latter is expected to facilitate compatibility between the Public Transportation Card system in Shanghai and the EasyCard system in Taipei. Both cities’ programs consist of stored-value smart cards that can be used to pay for public transportation services, including subways, trains and buses, as well as for purchases at participating locations such as convenience stores and gas stations.
“The annual forum has become a unique platform for Taipei and Shanghai to share ideas, increase mutual understanding and learn from each other’s experiences,” Ko says. “I hope to use the event to demonstrate the positive outcomes of city-to-city exchanges and create a win-win situation, with the end goal of achieving what’s in the best interests of people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.” The mayor notes that he looks forward to maintaining a long-term partnership with the mainland Chinese city.
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je delivers a speech at the 2015 Taipei-Shanghai City Forum in Shanghai, mainland China. (Photo courtesy of Taipei City Government)
Launched in 2010, the forum is hosted reciprocally by the two municipalities and has thus far led to the signing of 23 MOUs in areas such as education, medical and elderly care, environmental protection, sports, technology, tourism and transportation.
The Taipei-Shanghai City Forum is just one of many events organized to promote linkages between Taiwan’s businesses, cities, nongovernmental organizations (NGO) and ordinary citizens, and their counterparts in mainland China. Discussions at such forums have explored a variety of topics and brought together representatives of governments, the private sector and think tanks to tackle complex or controversial public issues and to offer viable policy options.
Chao Chun-shan (趙春山), a professor in the Graduate Institute of China Studies at Tamkang University in northern Taiwan’s New Taipei City, points out that cross-strait exchanges have grown rapidly since Republic of China (ROC) President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) took office in May 2008. One of the most significant developments was the resumption of institutionalized talks between Taiwan’s Straits Exchange Foundation and mainland China’s Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits. As of November last year, 11 rounds of negotiations had taken place, producing a total of 23 agreements.
Cross-strait forums are the perfect way for experts to discuss a wide range of issues including politically sensitive or controversial subjects, according to Chao. “Such platforms open up multiple communication channels and facilitate an intensified exchange of ideas regarding all sectors of society,” he says. “Also, they encourage new ways of thinking that can aid in the decision-making processes of officials as well as the members of the public.”
A young man and woman display EasyCards decorated with heart-shaped patterns. An accord was signed at last year’s twin-city conference to facilitate compatibility between the EasyCard system in Taipei and the Public Transportation Card system in Shanghai. (Photo by Central News Agency)
Several opinion polls, the professor notes, suggest that mutual trust between the people on the two sides of the Taiwan Strait remains weak. And some Taiwanese think that improved cross-strait economic and trade relations benefit only big business groups, while in fact such ties are advantageous to small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) as well, he says. “This distrust and misunderstanding highlight the need to deepen cross-strait contacts, and forums can facilitate such interactions.”
Chao, in addition to his role as an academic, is also the chairman of the Taipei-based Foundation on Asia-Pacific Peace Studies, whose primary missions are to promote exchanges and understanding across the Taiwan Strait and conduct policy analysis. Accordingly, since its establishment in 2008, the organization has arranged numerous gatherings in collaboration with think tanks and universities in Taiwan and mainland China. The meetings largely feature panel discussions and presentations, with the resulting reports disseminated to policymakers on both sides.
Over the years, the various local government and private sector forums have functioned as important mechanisms for cross-strait dialogue. Today, they continue to reinforce the consensus-building processes. In addition to the Taipei-Shanghai City Forum, another major event that has generated significant results is the Cross-Strait CEO Summit (CSCS).
The CSCS, organized for the first time in 2013, is held annually and alternates between Nanjing and Taipei. Former ROC Vice President Vincent Siew (蕭萬長) is the chairman of the CSCS in Taiwan. His counterpart is former mainland China Vice Premier Zeng Peiyan (曾培炎). Steve Chen (陳瑞隆), secretary-general of the CSCS, says the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement signed by Taiwan and mainland China in June 2010 marked a major milestone in cross-strait economic and trade relations. Consequently, a new mechanism was needed to facilitate industrial exchanges in this era of enhanced cooperation. “The CEO summit was established to provide an open and practical platform for Taiwanese and mainland enterprises to explore opportunities for collaboration and to work together to address the challenges of industrial transformation and regional economic integration,” Chen says. “The two sides should continue to move forward in the spirit of cooperation to achieve common prosperity.”
The Taiwan product center in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone allows Taiwanese firms to showcase their latest products to potential buyers in mainland China. (Photo courtesy of Cross-Strait CEO Summit)
At the inaugural CSCS held in Nanjing in 2013, seven task forces were created to foster cross-strait collaboration in the areas of biotechnology and health care, the cultural and creative industry, energy and petrochemical equipment, financial services, the information technology and home appliance sectors, as well as SMEs and emerging businesses. Experts were also invited to discuss macroeconomic policies.
When the summit was held at the Taipei International Convention Center on Dec. 15-16, 2014, it was attended by some 800 business executives, experts, scholars and government officials. They included Taiwanese industrial heavyweights Morris Chang (張忠謀), chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., and Stan Shih (施振榮), founder of Acer Inc., as well as prominent mainland Chinese businessmen Dai Houliang (戴厚良), senior vice president of China Petrochemical Corp. (Sinopec Group), and Jack Ma (馬雲), executive chairman of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group. A total of 31 cooperation accords and MOUs were signed at the event, including 24 deals on SMEs and the cultural and creative industry, in addition to an agreement to establish a Taiwan product center in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone.
The center, inaugurated on Nov. 1 last year, allows Taiwanese companies to display their latest goods. The zone also enables these firms to enjoy preferential tax treatment and convenient customs clearance services.
Chen says the 2015 edition of the CSCS, held in Nanjing on Nov. 3-4, emphasized growth and innovation among SMEs and the exploration of forward-thinking cooperation models. Around 850 representatives from academia, business communities and industry associations attended the event, with each of the summit’s seven task forces holding forums to address issues pertinent to their respective fields.
Tourists from mainland China visit Yehliu Geopark on Taiwan’s north coast. (Photo by Hsueh Chi-kuang)
Discussions also included possible ways for Taiwan to join the mainland China-initiated Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the proposed One Belt, One Road (OBOR) project. The AIIB is designed to provide funding for infrastructure projects in the Asia-Pacific region. The OBOR initiative, meanwhile, seeks to bolster international economic cooperation. Participating nations could potentially have greater access to markets throughout Southeast Asia, parts of South, Central and West Asia, in addition to East Africa and parts of Europe.
At the end of the summit, the two sides signed 34 letters of intent to cooperate in a number of areas including biotechnology, culture, financial and medical services, integrated circuits, natural gas, petrochemicals and telecommunications. “Cross-strait development may encounter challenges,” the secretary-general says. “But the summit has highlighted the commitment of Taiwanese and mainland Chinese enterprises to overcome difficulties, cooperate effectively and bring economic prosperity to both sides of the Taiwan Strait.”
In recent years, the many exchanges held to address cross-strait issues, bolster cooperation and resolve disagreements have seen a growing number and diversity of participants. Chao says he is glad to see increased grassroots participation at cross-strait forums, adding that a vibrant private sector is the main engine of innovation and growth.
“Forums can make up for the inadequacies of Track One diplomacy—negotiations between government representatives—by developing Track Two or Track Three, which involve academia, civil society groups and NGOs, as well as members of the public,” the professor says. “It’s encouraging that both sides have taken active steps to foster contact, dialogue and cooperation in many fields by organizing forums or other types of exchange activities. Those events are conducive to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait as well as in the Asia-Pacific region.”
Write to Kelly Her at kher@mofa.gov.tw