New Delhi: Taiwan has signalled it is open to having Indian migrant workers. In an announcement by its Ministry of Labor Friday, Taipei said it was signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on labour cooperation with the Government of India — a move that would open up the country to Indian workers.
In a statement released by the ministry, Taiwan announced that the agreement was signed over a video link in Taipei and New Delhi, but that finer details of the deal, such as its operationalisation, have yet to be finalised.
“The two parties will follow up on the completion of the procedures. Exchange letters and convene working-level meetings as soon as possible to continue discussing details such as future open industries and amounts, source regions of migrant workers, employment qualifications, and recruitment methods,” the statement said.
The MOU stipulates that while Taiwan will decide the industries to be opened and the number of Indian migrant workers to be allowed, India will be responsible for recruiting and training Indian migrant workers according to Taipei’s needs.
ThePrint has reached out to the Indian Ministry of External Affairs for a comment. The report will be updated if and when a comment is received.
India and Taiwan do not maintain official diplomatic ties since New Delhi follows the ‘One China Policy’ and recognises the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the sole legitimate representative of China.
However, India maintains an India-Taipei Association Office in Taiwan, and Taipei maintains the Taipei Economic and Cultural Center in India (TECC).
Meanwhile, the relationship between India and China has remained strained since the clashes in Galwan Valley in 2020. Last year, ThePrint reported that three former service chiefs from the Indian military visited Taiwan.
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Taiwan-India labour cooperation
In November 2023, Bloomberg reported that New Delhi and Taipei were working on a labour cooperation agreement that could see tens of thousands of Indians work at factories, farms, construction, and other industries.
After a social media backlash that mostly centred on women’s safety, Taipei claimed that the number — of 1,00,000 Indian workers — was inaccurate. At the same time, as concerns among Indians over racism in Taiwan grew, the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs put out a statement on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to say that Taiwan is a “pluralistic country”.
“As a pluralistic country, #Taiwan boasts significant social diversity & has long embraced migrant workers without prejudice, including those from #India. We enjoy flourishing ties with the #NewSouthBoundPolicy nation & aspire to further enhance our labor collaboration,” this post said.
Taiwan’s $790 billion economy is facing the issue of an aging population and needs more workers to keep the economy growing. By 2025, one-fifth of its population is expected to be above the age of 65, making it a “super-aged society,” according to its National Development Council.
The statement by its Ministry of Labor recognises this problem as one of the reasons for signing the agreement with India. “Affected by the country’s ageing population and low birth rate, the working-age population and grassroots labour force have shrunk sharply,” said the ministry statement. Currently, migrant labourers in Taiwan are from four countries — the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia.
The final signed MoU will be submitted to the Legislative Yuan (parliament of Taiwan) before being implemented from the Taiwanese side.
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