ECCT SME Centre Launch

Euroview Magazine April/May 2008

The European Chamber of Commerce Taipei (ECCT) officially opened its Small & Medium Enterprise (SME) Centre at a special reception at the World Trade Center Club.

The reception was attended by representatives from the Taiwan government, trade and industry, and European business. The guests of honour at the official opening ceremony were Dr. Robert Lai, Director General of SME Administration, Ministry of Economic Affairs (SMEA), Dr. Yi-Yuan Yueh, Director General, Institute for Information Industry (III), Mr. Walter Yeh, Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA), and Mr. Roscher Lin, Chairman of the National Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (NASME). SME founding members and co-chairmen of the SME Centre, Mr Thomas Siegers of Songfuli, Mr Elias Ek, President of Enspyre, and Mr Jean-Pascal Rignault of Smerwick On Site, together with ECCT CEO Guy Wittich, also gave presentations at the opening ceremony. Speeches were also given by Mr. Bayani Inocencio, Senior Vice President & SME Head, Commercial Banking, at HSBC, and Ms Daphne Huang from 1111 Jobbank about some of the banking and personnel services they are offering to SME Centre members.

The ECCT SME Centre, which has been in operation for several months, aims at providing services catering to the needs of Small & Medium Enterprises (SME) from Europe seeking to explore, set-up shop, and develop in the Taiwanese market, as well as Taiwanese SMEs wishing to look for partners and business opportunities in the European Union. The ECCT SME Centre membership offers a number of benefits including the opportunity to attend the many SME Centre events, such as workshops on topics ranging from tax to HR, seminars and meetings with government and institutions. Through the various activities, SME members gain knowledge from qualified professionals and network with fellow SMEs and other stakeholders. The SME Centre has already attracted a number of foreigner-owned SMEs in Taiwan, managers of local branch offices of foreign companies, and owners or managers of companies that have specific services or products catering to SMEs.

In addition to offering services and activities for its members, the SME Centre provides a unique platform for SMEs to network and build relationships with the Taiwanese government, Taiwanese business associations and other foreign-owned and managed SMEs. Since October 2007, the SME Centre has arranged a number of events on topics such as Internet marketing, branding, logistical solutions, accounting, HR and ARC-related legal issues. SME Centre members have also had the chance to meet and get to know Dr. Robert Lai, Director of Ministry of Economic Affairs' Small and Medium Enterprise Association, Dr. Yl-yuan Yueh, General Director for the very influential Institute for Information Industry, and Mr. Cliff Hsu, Assistant Director of the National Association of Small & Medium Enterprises.

At the opening ceremony, the Centre's new website was demonstrated by founding member and SME Centre co-chairman Thomas Siegers. The website offers a wealth of useful information for small and medium business owners doing business in Taiwan on topics such as financial services, taxation, and human resources, and also lists companies in the directory of the SME Centre website. The website further acts as a platform for busi¬ness opportunities between Taiwanese and European SMEs, with the support of the above-mentioned local business associations. The SME Centre Resource Website can be found at http://sme-centre.ecct.com.tw