With an aim to establish Taiwan as a global center for industrial innovation and R&D, the Multinational Innovative R&D Centers in Taiwan Program was initiated by the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) to encourage multinationals to set up their regional R&D centers in Taiwan. The ultimate goal is to create positive and complementary effects to local industries while establishing the synergy between local and multinational companies. With the new technology management systems introduced in the process, it is also expected that the overall industrial technology will be promoted to a higher level.

Since its initiation in 2002, the Program has received highly positive responses. It has been widely reported in the media, and leading multinationals such as HP, Sony, Dell, IBM and Intel have established their R&D centers in Taiwan. In the future, with high efficiency and proactive services, MOEA will continue to provide foreign corporations with information related to investment and business environment in Taiwan and to assist them in solving problems encountered in the process.

Advantages for Establishing R&D Centers in Taiwan

·Comprehensive Industrial Systems
With well-integrated up-, mid- and downstream industry systems, Taiwan plays an important role in global labor-division systems with various industries occupying decisive positions in the world market. For example, it is the world’s fourth largest semiconductor producer, next to the US, Japan and South Korea; the fourth largest IT hardware manufacturer, next to the US, Japan and mainland China; and one of the largest LCD panel producers second only to South Korea. Moreover, Taiwan is the leading producer of many products including laptop, ABS, WLAN and IC foundry.

·High-Quality Engineering Talent
With the wide-spread higher education systems in Taiwan and a large number of graduates who studied overseas between the 1950s and 1990s, there exists a wealth of engineering talents in Taiwan. Following a series of industrial development policies under the Taiwan government, these talents have established numerous high-tech companies with the first-class engineering management capability. Moreover, they have duplicated these development models all over the world and established close partnership with various multinationals. With the rapid development of industrial technology, the superb engineering talents and high value-added engineering management capabilities that Taiwan has built up over the years are essential for multinationals to develop the next-generation technologies and products.

·Close Collaboration among Industry, Government, Universities and Research Institutes
There are over 150 universities and colleges in Taiwan providing the human resources needed for industrial development. In addition, several research institutes were established to develop technologies needed for industrial development. To further stimulate industrial development, the government also formulated various policies and initiatives to build an industrial innovation system. These include the Technology Development Programs, research organizations with collaboration among industry, universities and research institutes, R&D parks, tax exemptions, venture capital systems, and industry clusters. The establishment of such a collaboration system has stimulated rapid communication of knowledge among these sectors. This has become the main driving force behind local industrial development and, in turn, will be the advantage for international R&D investment in Taiwan.

·Supportive Legal Framework for Technology Development
In recent years the government has enacted the Basic Law for Science and Technology and the Statute for Upgrading Industries, which lay down the basic principles and strategies for promoting the development of industrial technology and stimulating ongoing economic development. Moreover, other laws and statutes are also enacted for the protection of intellectual property rights, which include the Copyright Law, Patent Law, Trademark Law, Commercial Secrets Law, Plant Varieties and Seeds Law, Integrated Circuit Layout Protection Law, etc. Taiwan is determined to build a sound legal framework to support its technology development, making it an ideal location for multinationals to invest their resources.

For more information please go to the website:
http://innovation5.tdp.org.tw/group/application/tdp_mncf/index.php