Taipei City-based International Cooperation Development Fund (TaiwanICDF) and London-headquartered European Bank for Reconstruction and Development inked a memorandum of understanding on jointly promoting sustainable energy and resource investments.

Concluded at a signing ceremony in the ROC capital, the memorandum clears the way for the parties to foster transitional development in EBRD countries of operation, and create favorable conditions for sustainable market-orientated economies. It also allows both sides to strengthen and deepen collaboration while exploring further opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation.

“Taiwan and the EBRD have a longstanding relationship going back 20 years and the MOU is a further sign of this close relationship,” EBRD President Sir Suma Chakrabarti said in an interview with Taiwan Today. “The MOU will keep building this relationship and I am proud we are signing it.” Visiting Taiwan for the first time since his appointment as EBRD president in May 2012, Sir Suma described Taiwan’s links to the bank as “very, very strong” and ready to take the next step forward.

“We just want to step up our relationship until we get to a point where Taiwanese companies will come in and invest with us. That’s what we are hoping for, to help with market access in some of the regions that are less well served with foreign direct investment.”

Sir Suma said Central Asia is one such region where Taiwan firms could make a difference in the near term. The country is particularly strong in sharing knowledge via technical assistance, but the EBRD wants to help local companies invest in Central Asia and take advantage of the bank’s strong links in the area, he added.
“The EBRD is very successful in Central Asia and in fact, we had a bumper year last year. I just want to diversify the investors coming in and Taiwan will help reach that goal.”

Sir Suma said one of his first meetings whilst in Taiwan was with a Kazakh delegation, which was in country to learn about infrastructure management, highway maintenance and related issues. The Kazakhs chose Taiwan because there are fewer barriers to learning in comparison to other countries. In addition, representatives from the local public and private sectors are willing to visit Kazakhstan and see how they can tailor successful models to Central Asian conditions, he added.
“The Kazakhs are extremely happy with their engagement with Taiwan and want to sign an MOU.”

According to Sir Suma, Taiwan’s knowledge economy is leading edge in global markets and has great appeal in terms of investment opportunities to many of the bank’s regions of operation. “I have not seen anything so powerful in any of the countries I have visited. It is quite striking, actually, how much is happening.”
Taiwan’s can-do approach and willingness to make decisions quickly also appeals to many nations, Sir Suma said, explaining why the EBRD is helping Taiwan boost its international profile by bolsering business ties in different parts of the world. “This is what Taiwan has struggled with in the past: building these connections.”
Other areas in which Taiwan could make a splash include Eastern Europe and the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean, Sir Suma said. Many Eastern European countries need to find new sources of growth to help overcome the effects of the eurozone crisis. They must find the highest value-adding processes as fast as possible, he said.

Sir Suma identifies Taiwan’s knowledge economy value chain—based on linking scientific knowledge, universities, government and the private sector—as a worthwhile model that can help these European countries discover the answer for themselves. “Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia … have taken many of these lessons on board and tend to look to the East for answers. These countries could gain significantly from Taiwan’s participation.”

Although the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean is a relatively new area of operation for the EBRD, Sir Suma describes it as “potential laden” and one where Taiwan companies can make sizeable contributions.

“We are now in Morocco, Tunisia, Jordan and Egypt. Each of the countries is quite different and if you look at Egypt and Morocco, you will see they are quite big economies, almost Turkey in size but not doing as well as Turkey.

“I think the key thing Taiwanese companies need to do is to read the country assessments … see what’s on offer and then take a view from your own expertise and see where you might be able to make an entrance. Using local offices to make connections is fundamentally important in those countries.”

Taiwan has played a significant role in the EBRD as a contributor and participant in bank activities such as donor funding, consultancy services and procurement, and trade facilitation. Although the country takes a low-key approach to its role, which began in 1991 with the bank’s launch, it quickly developed a reputation as a valuable provider of targeted aid.

To date, Taiwan technical assistance through the TaiwanBusiness - EBRD Cooperation Fund in the bank’s countries of operation from Central Europe to Central Asia was US$34 million for more than 230 projects. And last year, the country was the largest donor to the EBRD courtesy of an agreement signed by the TaiwanICDF.Providing US$80 million for concessional financing in support of the bank’s municipal and environmental infrastructure projects across the fields of energy efficiency and green technology, the agreement also calls for an injection of US$20 million in additional resources to spur small business lending.

Going forward, Sir Suma invited the government to work with the bank in setting up a consortium of local small and medium enterprises to make sizeable overseas investments. Taiwan’s SMEs have much to offer and this is one way of capitalizing on their proven track record of success, he said.

Describing the Taiwan-EBRD future as bright, Sir Suma said the sky is the limit for the relationship given such a strong foundation already exists. “When I next come back, I want to say we have now made a couple of investments together, that would be great.”