Taiwan can win again in 2021
The year 2020 has not been a kind year for economies throughout the world. Taiwan’s economy has done remarkably well in 2020, the year of COVID-19. In fact, Taiwan was one of the brightest economies in the world.
Taiwan acted quickly by implementing strict measures to control the virus. Much of this really stems from Taiwan’s experiences with dealing with the SARS virus back in 2003. Taiwan learned from the experience and now Taiwan’s economy is moving forward because of the measures implemented by the government. As of now, Taiwan’s economy is running normally given these management techniques that it has implemented this year.
COVID-19 has had such a big impact on travel, business and economies that many leaders felt it was necessary to develop stimulus packages for their nations. Taiwan followed through with its own series of economic stimulus packages, including a stimulus voucher program. These vouchers were given to citizens who then spent them like cash on anything they wanted to buy, thus stimulating the entire economy of Taiwan. The successful stimulus programs demonstrated Taiwan’s high capacity government is highly effective at moving the economy.
Taiwan has always been strong in the IT, technology and medical industries. Given recent experiences and Taiwan’s promising future, many companies are relocating to Taiwan to take advantage of the talent available on the island. Taiwan’s democracy, well-trained worker base as well as the rule of law makes Taiwan an excellent base for Western companies to set up offices. In recent years, many companies started to increase investments in Taiwan which was accelerated by the pandemic.
The work from home movement has increased exports in computers and tech products from Taiwan. Taiwan’s currency has also gotten stronger over the last months since the pandemic started in March, illustrating the high confidence placed on Taiwan’s economy. This is a good sign for Taiwan as it looks to capitalizing on this trend for 2021.
According to AmCham, Taiwan’s GDP increased by 2.54 percent, one of only a dozen countries that experienced positive growth this year. Taiwan should be congratulated on its management of this issue and should use this momentum to build a diverse economy as we begin 2021.
America has seen a change in political discourse and a new president being elected. Newly elected President Joe Biden has shown his interest in working with Taiwan and has voted for pro-Taiwan measures in the past, such as the Taiwan Relations Act. Commentators have said Biden has a strong commitment to democracy and Taiwan, so it might be an opportunity for Taiwan to reorient itself in this new climate. It might be a way to engage in international agreements and to diversify Taiwan’s economy by working with the United States.
Going into the new year, 2021 will be Taiwan’s year if the government and businesses continue working together to strengthen its talent and cooperation with like-minded partners around the world.
