Top experts, officials talk tech at WCIT’s 1st Leaders Roundtable

2017/09/14

Top experts and government officials from home and abroad took part in the World Congress on Information Technology’s inaugural Leaders Roundtable Sept. 12 in Taipei City, discussing current and emerging challenges, innovations, opportunities and trends in the global IT industry.
 
 Participants included Minister without Portfolio Wu Tsung-tsong, whose responsibilities extend to overseeing the development of Taiwan’s high-tech industry; Ondrousek Marek, deputy minister of industry and trade in the Czech Republic; Fleur Pellerin, former minister of small and medium enterprises, innovation and the digital economy in France; and Noah Kroloff, principal and co-founder of think tank Global Security and Innovative Strategies in the U.S.
 
 According to event co-organizer the Industrial Development Bureau under the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the leaders engaged in lively talks while sharing respective experiences and best practices in areas spanning broadband communication, information communication technology and smart city development.
 
 One of the key takeaways from the roundtable was the role of ICT applications in more effectively managing public and private sector responses to aging populations, energy shortages, environmental degradation, social security and the urban-rural divide. Another was the need to revitalize the global economy for the benefit of all within the framework of the circular economy and sustainable development.
 
 At a post-roundtable dinner banquet, Premier Lai Ching-te said among the government’s goals is transforming Taiwan from a center for contract manufacturing into a global leader in the digital economy. This is being accomplished through promoting smart innovation as prioritized under the policy platform of President Tsai Ing-wen, he added.
 
 According to Lai, the government has rolled out several key measures in this regard. These include implementing the Asia Silicon Valley project under the five-plus-two innovative industries initiative, promoting development in artificial intelligence, big data analysis, cloud computing and Internet of Things, and spurring regulatory reform and talent cultivation.
 
 IT businesses and professionals from around the world are invited to explore exciting opportunities stemming from Taiwan’s digital economy and help advance the global ICT sector, Lai said.
 
 Launched 39 years ago in Barcelona, WCIT is one of the most important events in the global IT industry’s calendar. Nearly 4,000 captains of industry, government officials and IT experts from 80 countries and territories are in Taiwan until Sept. 13 for the annual event.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/news.php?unit=6&post=121414)