“Taiwan Expo 2022” The economical and cultural bridge between Thailand - Taiwan Hoping to forge a bond and become world class factories for manufacturing innovation and tech products
The 4th year of Taiwan Expo 2022 – the largest expo for innovation and technological products in Thailand – continues to support the B2B model online and offline. The event packs a diverse range of products and innovations from leading Taiwanese brands.
Dr. Chuang Suo Hang, Representative of Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Thailand , representative of the Taiwanese government in Thailand, said that the Taiwan Expo is one of the projects under the New Southbound initiative of the Taiwan’s government, in the hopes that it can become a bridge to link Thailand and Taiwan, both economically and culturally. Taiwan’s products and innovations have the potential to become one of the best options for Thai entrepreneurs. Thailand is considered the land of opportunities in ASEAN that investors are showing their interest in. The success of the Taiwan Expo 2021 saw over 284 business matching and over 118 buyers in attendance, receiving excellent feedback. The Taiwan Expo 2022 is expected to be as successful, with no fewer than 20,000 attendees both online and in-person. It is expected to generate 30% of growth in value compared to the 2021 event which was held exclusively online.
The Taiwan Expo 2022 is different from the previous year, especially concerning its format and exhibited products. This year, the hybrid event fuses online and offline channels to enable Thai entrepreneurs to gain full access to products and innovation from Taiwan. There are over 240 business operators from Taiwan who participate online, and 46 operators onsite – a result from the success of the 2021 event, which made many business operators in Taiwan become interested in business matching. It is expected that this year’s event will likewise continue this success. The products that were selected for exhibition focus on those with smart manufacturing, especially health-related and outdoor lifestyle products.
“The products that are featured at the Taiwan Expo 2022 went through a rigorous selection. They all received the Taiwan Excellence mark to set them apart as the best of Taiwan’s creative products. Bringing them into the Thai market will have to go through a co-design process that will make sure they can satisfy people's needs in real life. In addition to Thailand, Taiwan also expands the success of Taiwan Expo in 5 other countries in this region – India, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines. There are also regular trade events, exhibitions, investor’s visits to Taiwan, and if investors are interested in purchasing the products, they can visit the factories to observe the manufacturing process to gain confidence in the quality. We invite Thai people to invest in Taiwan, and we’re ready to invite Taiwanese to invest in Thailand as well,” said the representative of the Taiwanese government in Thailand.
The value of trade between Taiwan and Thailand has been growing continuously. In 2021, the export value of Taiwan to Thailand was at US$7 billion, with the main products being 1) electronics, 2) auto parts, 3) machines for manufacturing, 4) semiconductors, and 5) metal sheets. The export value of Thailand to Taiwan was at US$6 billion, which was considered a sustainable equilibrium. The investment was also growing in a positive direction from January to June 2022. Taiwanese investors have come to invest over US$1 billion in Thailand as they view that Thailand has a tendency for positive growth and complete supply chain. Together with the government’s support on the 4.0 policy, it is anticipated that should the two governments collaborate, it will become an important push for Taiwan to become the leader in tech manufacturing in ASEAN in the 21st century.
“Thailand has many strong points that make it suitable for investment. From culture and food, being a democratic country, having a free trade policy, BCG economy model, and the Eastern Economic Corridor – all of these are what interest Taiwanese investors in addition to the industrial policy 4.0. Taiwan focuses on technology and, as the leading producer of semiconductors and small electronic parts, we believe that in the manufacturing industry of hi-tech products, Taiwan and Thailand can work together to become the world’s factory, in addition to Thailand being the world’s kitchen,” Dr. Chuang Suo Hang concluded.
