The 2022 APEC Forum on “Entrepreneurship for the Future of Work” initiated by the Ministry of Education (MOE) and hosted by National Taipei University of Technology (Taipei Tech), will take place from the 16th to 18th of November. The forum is the first face-to-face event since the pandemic, inviting speakers and delegates from the APEC region to participate. Through in-person exchanges, the Forum is expected to re-strengthen regional cooperation. With 95 delegates from 17 APEC member economies registered to participate in the 3-day event, the Forum has attracted greater participation than ever before.

James H.C. Liang, Deputy Director General of the Department of Higher Education, MOE, indicated that under the influence of the pandemic, the Ministry has not been able to host a face-to-face event for the past two years. “We can finally meet with the delegates from the region and discuss the critical issues face to face,” said Liang.

Liang also noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has triggered major disruptions in many aspects of people’s everyday lives during the past couple of years. Among these disruptions, young people and women were particularly singled out as groups most significantly affected in terms of their economic autonomy and labor force participation. The pandemic has also changed the market ecology and expedited the digital transformation of traditional industries. “Therefore, to build up capacity and entrepreneurial skills for this everchanging working world, preparing and cultivating women and youth in the APEC region for the post-pandemic job market, is a prioritized mission and the theme of this forum,” said Liang. 

On the first day of the Forum, Audrey Tang, Minister of Digital Affairs, will be the first keynote speaker to share how the new government policies will support the future of work in achieving digital transformation. The second keynote speaker invited, Kevin Ho, Co-founder and CIO of Taiwan Mobile Internet Labs, has more than a decade of venture experiences, will share the patterns and trends of industrial entrepreneurship. Jeff Hu, the CEO & Co-founder of Turing Chain, who is known as one of the most promising entrepreneurs in the blockchain industry, will share his experience in contributing to cross-regional economic recovery during this post-pandemic era through a live broadcast from Fukuoka, Japan.

To promote economic empowerment for women, a female entrepreneurship panel session is incorporated in the event. Becky Chin Chi-yun, Representative from Her Attitude, Ngo Thi Hoai, Director of WECREATE from Vietnam, and Jennifer Chen, Co-founder and CEO of Dipp Inc., are invited to share their startup journey and to encourage the woman’s participation in non-traditional sectors and strive to diversify their developments in entrepreneurship.

The third day of the event is the finals for the Regional Youth Start-up Contest. The group of young entrepreneurs-to-be of the APEC member economies and the R.O.C. (Taiwan) are invited to share their business ideas through demo pitching. A group of professional jurors from venture capital companies and incubation centers will evaluate their business models. From providing startup cash prizes and useful suggestions, the young contestants will be encouraged to plan the most innovative and sustainable business ideas that could help in accelerating regional recovery.    

The APEC Forum on “Entrepreneurship for the Future of Work”, initiated by the MOE and hosted by Taipei Tech, aims to reinforce regional connectivity and facilitate economic prosperity through providing an exchange platform for young entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs-to-be of the region to achieve the goal of developing a thriving and sustainable APEC economy.