On March 30, Australian Office In Taipei Representative Jenny Bloomfield, Economic and Policy Section Deputy Director Laura Salt, and colleagues paid a visit to Tainan City Mayor Huang Wei-che. Tainan City Government’s Bureau of Education Director-general Cheng Hsin-hui, Department of Information and International Relations Director-general Su En-en, Economic Development Bureau Deputy Director-general Xiao Fu-Ren, and Simen Experimental Elementary School Principal Lu Cui-Ling were also present. Both parties engaged in extensive and in-depth discussions on bilingual education, economic collaborations, investment opportunities, green energy, and hydrogen energy partnerships.
In terms of economics and commerce, Mayor Huang stated that both Taiwan and Australia offer a variety of high-quality agricultural products: Australia has red wine, beef, and lobsters, while Tainan is well-known for its pineapples and orchids. Huang hopes subsequent partnerships will let more Tainan residents taste the delicacies from Australia and more Australians can have access to Tainan’s excellent produce.
Huang also invited Representative Bloomfield to come commemorate the 400th anniversary of the founding of Tainan City in 2024. He looks forward to fully presenting the friendship between Taiwan and Australia as well as Australian elements during the celebration.
Tainan is an important hub for Taiwan’s green energy development, according to the Mayor, and Australia is Taiwan’s top energy provider. Energy transition is a global trend, and Australia has a lot of relevant expertise that Tainan can learn from. Hopefully, Tainan and Australia will be able to collaborate in the future to help realize the global goal of net zero carbon emissions.
Representative Bloomfield expressed that Tainan is the oldest city in Taiwan and she is grateful for the opportunity to visit the Cultural Capital. She also emphasized that Taiwan and Australia now share a closer relationship. In addition to collaborations in the energy, stock farming, and agriculture sectors, she recognizes Tainan’s efforts in promoting bilingual education. In response to Taiwan’s Bilingual Nation 2030 policy goals, Representative Bloomfield mentioned that Australia has rich experience in teaching English as a second or foreign language and can provide quality English language education services to people from different backgrounds. Finally, the Representative expressed her admiration for Tainan’s orchids and hopes to visit Tainan often in the future.
Representative Jenny Bloomfield came into office on Feb. 1, 2021. Her Tainan visit coincided with the Taiwan International Orchid Show. Because Tainan produces one out of every six orchids in the world, Mayor Huang Wei-che gifted the Representative with special orchids dyed with the colors of the Ukraine flag to highlight the spirit of free democratic countries working together and also expressed the hope that Taiwan and Australia can have closer interactions in economy and trade, culture, and between private sectors.