Secretariat, Taipei City Government

On May 18, Executive Director of the German Trade Office Taipei (GTO), Axel Limberg; the President and CEO of Siemens Taiwan, Erdal Elver; the Managing Director of TÜV Rheinland Taiwan, Jennifer Wang; and GTO staff had a meeting with Mayor Chiang and the team at Taipei City Hall. The parties exchanged views, shared information on various municipal issues, and discussed potential avenues for future cooperation.

Mayor Chiang brought up GTO German Company Charity Soccer Tournament which was held on April 28, called Play For Those Who Can’t. Mayor Chiang highlighted the participation of 16 well-known German companies and the successful fundraising of NT$430,000, which was donated to the Disabled Children’s Rights and Advocacy Association in Taiwan. Mayor Chiang expressed his admiration and appreciation for the charitable spirit of the German companies in Taiwan and for their efforts in giving back to the society and caring for disadvantaged groups.

Executive Director Axel Limberg expressed his gratitude to Mayor Chiang for arranging the meeting despite the mayor’s busy schedule and mentioned that the meeting represented another starting point for continuous cooperation between the GTO and the Taipei City Government. He further stated that the GTO organizes a variety of charity events every year, allowing German companies in Taiwan to fulfill their corporate social responsibility and give back to the Taiwanese society. The annual Oktoberfest and German Christmas market events are expected to be held in Taipei later this year, offering an authentic experience of German traditional culture to the citizens of Taipei.

Mayor Chiang said that Germany is the world’s fourth-largest and Europe’s largest economy and business center. In 2022, Germany became Taiwan’s largest European trading partner. According to the European Innovation Scoreboard, which is published by the European Union, Germany is a leader in innovation, ranking first in Europe for the total number of patent applications submitted. Several German industries have demonstrated outstanding performance internationally and have been highly recognized. Mayor Chiang brought up Germany’s dual-track vocational training program, which fosters talents required by the industry through collaboration between business, governmental agencies, and schools. Mayor Chiang believes Taiwan can learn from the success of Germany’s dual-track vocational training program.

Erdal Elver, President and CEO at Siemens Taiwan, stated that the company is willing to share technological and vocational education training and technology-related information with the Taipei City Government. He mentioned that Siemens has already collaborated with five vocational schools in Taipei on technological and vocational education initiatives. Jennifer Wang, Managing Director of TÜV Rheinland Taiwan, suggested that enhancing energy efficiency in old buildings would contribute to energy conservation and reduce carbon emissions in urban areas, thereby achieving sustainable urban development goals.

Finally, Executive Director Axel Limberg expressed a strong desire for collaboration between the GTO and the Taipei City Government in areas such as smart transportation, green energy, green buildings, and charging stations. He also gifted Mayor Chiang a plate with the quote to hope that Mayor Chiang would feel inspired by the words of German literary figure Johann Wolfgang von Goethe—Whatever you dream you can do, start today. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Executive Director Limberg encouraged Mayor Chiang to continue leading Taipei City toward effective achievement of its sustainable development goals.