On the morning of December 21, President Tsai Ing-wen attended the 2016 Forum on Opportunities for New Southbound Policy, where she elaborated that the New Southbound Policy has already started and both the private and public sectors should simultaneously work in a two-pronged approach to promote it. Through wide-ranging discussions and cooperation, these two sectors can establish a new type of partnership with the countries targeted by the New Southbound Policy.

President Tsai Ing-wen celebrated the contributions of immigrants at a festival Dec. 17 in Taipei City, praising the new residents and pledging that the government will continually strive to ensure Taiwan remains a pluralistic and inclusive society.

Our New Southbound Policy is underway. In the coming weeks and months, my government will concentrate resources and push ahead with implementation. For instance, we will hold events and exhibitions on Taiwan in major cities in ASEAN. We will expand the role of our international agricultural development companies. We will recruit more foreign students, and we will make concrete progress on investment projects.