Taiwan to help with labour cooperation and employment | Daily News

Taiwan to help with labour cooperation and employment

Offering overseas job opportunities for Lankans

According to a news article in early 2022, there are about 22,000 Sri Lankans working in South Korea contributing to USD 520 million in forex remittance. This number accounts for 7.75% of forex income as well as 0.62% of GDP. Sri Lankan ranking officials have wished South Korea to increase the hiring of workers from Sri Lanka.

While Sri Lanka is in great need of overseas job opportunities, Taiwan has 200,000 unfilled job vacancies mainly in the manufacturing and caretaker sectors and they are keen to offer them to Sri Lanka.


Ben Wang

Director-General, Taipei. Economic and Cultural Center and Consul General in Chennai who is also in charge of Sri Lanka, Ben Wang said that they observe that Sri Lanka is now taking many steps to increase their expiate workforce to Increase Forex Remittance.

Labour cooperation between Taiwan and Sri Lanka will create a win-win situation. Sri Lankan workers can help Taiwan alleviate labour shortage and by filling these job vacancies in Taiwan Sri Lanka can attract an additional USD five billion in forex per year. This would serve as a mind-blowing opportunity for Lanka.”

Currently, there are around 700,000 emigrant workers in Taiwan comprising 260,000 Indonesians, 150,000 Filipinos, 50,000 Thais, and 230,000 Vietnamese.

Despite the lack of diplomatic ties with Taiwan, the four countries, including one-party-ruled socialist Vietnam, have maintained vibrant relations with Taiwan.

All of them have set up an official representative office in Taiwan, and vice versa, for more or less than three decades, to promote bilateral interests.

Labour cooperation has benefited these countries in addressing domestic unemployment, earning forex remittance, uplifting living standards and stimulating economic growth.

He said that the new Minister of Labor, Manusha Nanayakkara should try organizing a delegation to visit Taiwan for a fact-finding and feasibility assessment tour.

He said that after job opportunities direct Air link (with a stopover in Chennai) can be mooted to bring in Tourists and Investments from Taiwan to Sri Lanka. He also said that despite Taiwan being a Buddhist country only a limited tourism promotion has been done.

As Taiwan tourists like to travel to these areas, the Taipei-Colombo-Chennai air route will become one of the busiest in this region.”

Sri Lanka should also look at lifting the persistent discriminatory practice of filing a “Declaration of Identification for Visa Purpose” imposed on Taiwan nationals at border entrance to encourage tourists and investment from Taiwan.


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