10 progresses on Indonesia-Taiwan ties from New Southbound Policy

11 October 2019

Jakarta (Indonesia Window) – Under the presidency of Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwan has been carrying out the New Southbound Policy initiative to enhance cooperation and exchanges with 18 Southeast Asian, South Asian and Australasian countries.

With this idea, relations between Indonesia and Taiwan continue to strengthen as indicated by progresses in several sectors of cooperation.

During the Taiwan National Day celebration known as the “Double Tenth Day” constituting the 10th day of the 10th month (October) in Jakarta earlier this week, Head of the Taiwan Economic and Trade Office (TETO) John Chen explained a number of progresses made by Indonesia and Taiwan within the framework of the New Southbound Policy.

Investment

At present there are more than 2,000 Taiwanese companies operating in Indonesia and providing millions of job opportunities for people in the country.

Taiwanese contractors and consultants also participated in such important infrastructure projects as the Jakarta Rapid Transit and Jakarta Light Rail.

Education

At present, there are around 12,000 Indonesian students studying in Taiwan. Various scholarship and training programs provided by the Taiwanese government are in line with national human resource development policy priorities.

Employment

At present around 300,000 Indonesians work, study and live in Taiwan.

“Around 300,000 Indonesians work, study and live in Taiwan. Not only do Indonesian migrant workers choose to work in Taiwan for better salaries but also for the friendliness of the people in the Formosa Island as well as for the health and welfare insurance that we provide,” explained John Chen.

Humanity

Taiwan always shows its solidarity, sympathy and empathy to Indonesian people who are affected by disasters.

Last year, after the earthquakes and tsunamis hit several areas on the island of Lombok (West Nusa Tenggara), Central Sulawesi and the Sunda Strait, Taiwan donated more than US$2.86 million for community recovery in these affected areas.

“Our donations are used to provide ambulances, water tanks, shelter and latrines, and to build schools and centers for Islamic activities,” John Chen said.

Agriculture

For 42 years the Taiwan government has sent agricultural technical teams to Indonesia to help farmers develop and improve their products.

There are currently 18 collaborative projects between Indonesia and Taiwan, including Bali’s One Village One Product (OVOP), Bogor agribusiness (West Java), improvement and development of corporate agriculture in Bandung (West Java), development of superior varieties of rice in South Sulawesi, and cooperation in agricultural pilot areas in Karawang (West Java).

Health

The Taiwanese government helps Indonesia prevent dengue fever.

Land mapping

The Department of Agriculture and Biosystems of the Faculty of Agricultural Technology (FTP) of the Gadjah Mada University (UGM) conducted a mapping of the diversity of soil microorganisms on the island of Java and Taiwan, in collaboration with the Department of Bioenvironmental Systems Engineering,

College of Bioresources and Agriculture, National Taiwan University (NTU).

Research conducted from April 2019 covers the diversity of soil microorganisms as a result of various types of climates and land uses.

Social

The large number of Taiwanese diasporas in Indonesia and Indonesians studying on the Formosa Island, has led to the formation of a number of social organizations that connect the two parties.

Some of them are the Alumni Association of Taiwan Graduates, the Taiwan Alumni Association in Jakarta, the Taiwan Employers’ Organization, and the Taiwan Business Club in eight regions namely Jakarta, Surabaya, Bandung, Cirebon, Batam, North Sumatra, Central Java, and Bali.

Daily products

Some trademarks of beverages from Taiwan have become Indonesian people’s favorite products and are increasingly popular in the country, such as Chatime, Koi, CoCo, Happiness Hall, and Tiger Sugar.