Premier Mao promotes entrepreneurship

2015-01-16

No government effort will be spared in developing a nurturing environment for startups and creating opportunities for youth in Taiwan, according to Premier Mao Chi-kuo Jan. 14.

“Promotion of innovation and entrepreneurship is a top policy priority,” Mao said. “All agencies are instructed to work toward building Taiwan into the Silicon Valley of Asia and boosting youth entrepreneurship.”

The premier made the remarks after a joint briefing by the Cabinet’s Office of Science and Technology and related ministries in Taipei City.

During an innovation forum organized by the National Development Council earlier the same day, Mao pledged to re-engineer Taiwan’s information and communications technology supply chain while transforming the country into a global support center for innovation.

According to the OST, a key plank in the Cabinet’s policy platform is establishment of an innovation and entrepreneurship center in the first half of the year in Silicon Valley. This is expected to enhance business networking, talent training and technology exchanges between the two sides.

Leveraging Taiwan’s strengths in advanced process technology, hardware manufacturing and software development, an accelerator for rapid prototyping and pilot production will be set up later this year providing services to startups in the U.S. high-tech center, an OST official said.

Equally important is the creation of a Taiwan Silicon Valley Technology Fund to finance startups by ROC nationals in Taiwan and the U.S. Initial capitalization is set at US$100 million, with 60 percent coming from the private sector.

In addition to benefitting local firms, these measures will spur development of Taiwan’s small, medium and social enterprises, the official added.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=226306&CtNode=413)