On November 29, the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) jointly held a press conference with the French Office in Taipei. During the conference, co-hosts NSTC Minister Tsung-Tsong Wu and French Office in Taipei Director Franck Paris, announced that Taiwan and France had recently signed a Science and Tech-nology Cooperation Convention (STC). By focusing on six key areas, this STC aims to lift Taiwan-France scientific research cooperation to new heights.

During the press conference, Executive Yuan Premier Chien-Jen Chen, who was al-so in attendance, stated that Taiwan’s success and performance in scientific re-search and technology industries have started to garner international attention and acclaim. With these experiences and achievements, Taiwan looks forward to tackling the world’s toughest challenges by cooperating with like-minded coun-tries that are also free, democratic, and respect human rights. Minister Wu also stated that the NSTC has promoted S&T exchange and cooperation with ministry-level agencies in Taiwan’s partner countries over the past three years. To date, Taiwan has signed science and technology cooperation agreements with three technology powerhouses: the US, Germany, and France. Based on the country’s emphasis on technological development, Taiwan will also sign S&T agreements with other countries in the future. These agreements will continue to strengthen the global importance and influence of Taiwan’s scientific research and S&T indus-tries.

Following Premier Chen and Minister Wu’s remarks, French Office in Taipei Direc-tor Paris stated that Taiwan’s S&T strength and industrial development have gar-nered attention across the world. Director Paris also stated that France has en-joyed remarkable development in many S&T sectors, and that by signing this STC, Taiwan and France will be able to establish more comprehensive S&T cooperation in the future. During the press conference, Diplomatic Representative in France François Wu Chih-Chung delivered remarks via video. Representative Wu affirmed the importance and impact of Taiwan’s scientific research strength in supporting diplomatic efforts. In addition, Representative Wu stated that he hopes the Tai-wan-France S&T partnership can enjoy more cooperation and develop further in the future. 

This STC is the result of NSTC Minister Wu’s visit to France in 2022. Following a year of hard work and discussion with France, Representative Wu and Director Paris signed the STC on November 23 in Paris. Minister Wu was also in attendance to personally witness the signing process. The STC will focus cooperation in six key areas, which include semiconductors and quantum, healthcare, marine technolo-gy, cybersecurity and AI, green industries, energy and net-zero, and space tech-nology.  

During his recent visit to France, Minister Wu also met with Minister of Higher Ed-ucation and Research Sylvie Retailleau to discuss specific cooperation plans and strategies that will launch after the signing of the STC. Both Minister Wu and Retal-lieau aim to initiate new bilateral cooperation as soon as possible. According to ini-tial plans, a Taiwan-France Science and Technology Meeting, which will focus on dialogues regarding S&T policy and academic research, is scheduled to take place in early May 2024 in Taiwan.

Media Contact:
Kai-Shyr Wang
Section Chief 
Department of International Cooperation and Science Education 
National Science and Technology Council
Tel: +886-2-2737-7810
kswang@nstc.gov.tw