Meet Valerie Hsu, founder of TAIWAN GLOBALIZATION NETWORK (TGN) in the Netherlands. Valerie is the perfect link for business opportunities between Taiwan and the Netherlands.
VH: “Taiwan is really a technology island and famous for its innovation industry. Worldwide, ninety percent of the information technology products are made by Taiwanese – a lot of their factories are in China, owned by Taiwanese. Health care products, devices and software – in one word, MedTech, is a very important innovative sector in Taiwan. The Taiwanese government stimulates its companies and startups to think globally. The government evaluates startups, advises them and connects them to TGN. Our role is to introduce these companies to suitable partners and verify if there is a viable market for the product.”
‘Opportunity is always there, that’s my philosophy’
Last year TGN also started a ‘’Tiger Accelerator program’’ in Taipei City, which is a tailor-made ‘soft landing’ program for selected start-ups that wish to enter the EU market, starting in the Netherlands. At the same time the program in Taipei also offers Rotterdam and other Dutch startups or scale ups a similar approach. The Taiwanese government provides a portfolio of facilities to European startups aiming for access to the Asian market. Exploring the opportunities is facilitated with free workspace in incubators, access to subsidies and grants and regular programs which give easy access to the industry and research institutes which allow European startups a soft landing in Asia.
.VH: Taiwan has unique advantages for the Rotterdam MedTech entrepreneurs when it comes to scaling up. Say, you have a prototype and you want to have just a hundred copies, for presentations and the like. Most companies go to China, knowing production will be cheap there, but the Chinese companies are not interested in such small orders. In Taiwan, thanks to the government subsidies, small companies can place orders for a hundred or a thousand items, still produced in a cheap way. That can be of interest not only for innovative startups but also for big companies such as ESA Business Information Centres (BICs) for instance.’
‘’I love to go to the LSH010 breakfast meetings in Rotterdam Science Tower because of the energetic people and the ambition in this city!”
It’s not only in Life Sciences & Health the Taiwanese are interested in. Their interest encompasses technologies such as smart mobility, smart city solutions, and water management. TGN/Tiger Accelerator has an office inTaipei that works to bring the Dutch companies into contact with potential partners. At the same time, Tiger Accelerator accelerates the access to European markets for Asian Scale-Ups. In the global fight for talent, innovation and business, having an attractive proposition for foreign entrepreneurs is a key policy – especially for ambitious cities like Rotterdam. That’s why Tiger Accelerator seeks cooperation with Rotterdam: to develop a conducive environment and attractive program where Taiwanese scale ups can collaborate with the local businesses and institutes and work together for a better future.
Jelle van de Weijde, native in the 010 region and working at the Economic Board Utrecht knows that the success rate of LS&H startups is not very high, even after soft landing programs.
‘’There are several reasons, from lack of patience to no good market fit. Therefore TGN and Economic Board Utrecht are starting in september 2019 the ‘ RAPID Health Program’, a one-month bootcamp-like program to introduce the Taiwanese start ups to the Dutch health care system and to get them to know where they meet potential partners and investors. In their week of visits & matchmaking they also visit the innovative city of Rotterdam and the last week is for making deals with partners. So this gives more opportunities to the Taiwanese and Dutch. Together they can come to a proof of concept, and build up relationships. Then the hard works starts …..”
Alle nieuwsberichten
Ellen Smit: ‘Met Rotterdam Square doorbouwen op stevige basis van LSH010’
De activiteiten van Life Sciences & Health 010 (LSH010) worden op 22 maart 2023 officieel overgedragen aan Rotterdam Square. Ellen Smit is directeur van deze nieuwe organisatie. ‘Het is voor Rotterdam geweldig dat er een vaste plek komt waar bedrijfsleven, onderzoek en onderwijs elkaar fysiek treffen.’
Lees meerLife Sciences & Health Mission to Malaysia and Indonesia
Are you looking to expand your business to the South East Asian region, or do you want to strengthen existing relations within the region? If so, the upcoming Life Sciences & Health mission to Malaysia and Indonesia might be of interest to you. From the 22nd of May to the 26th of May, 2023, Task Force Health Care and a group of Dutch stakeholders will be traveling to the ASEAN region to have in-person contact with key opinion leaders and various stakeholders in the region. This mission is part of a multi-annual public-private programme Strategic Multi-Annual Market Approach (SMM) programme targeting South East Asia focused on Connected Care. As the second outgoing mission of this programme, this mission will serve both new exploratory stakeholders as well as active stakeholders that have already settled in the region.
During this mission we shall travel to:
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (optional)
Surabaya and Jakarta, Indonesia
What can you expect?
Both Malaysia and Indonesia show strong economic growth and are actively investing in the healthcare sector. Both regions focus on improving the access to care, and quality of care, with digital as well as physical solutions. As The Netherlands encourages partnerships in this field with the ASEAN region, let’s utilize this oppotunity to address these challenges together. Please find the draft programme, here.
Opportunities in Malaysia
The public and private healthcare sectors in Malaysia are focused on expanding on technology, medical devices, and digital health themes to ensure world-class quality healthcare service delivery. The efforts to progress these areas are part of a larger effort to modernize care and create a more efficient system that focusses on tele-medicine, elderly care, and disease management. This means leveraging technology for innovation and increasing international collaboration to lead Malaysia’s digital health scene to further modernize their healthcare system.
Opportunities in Indonesia
Indonesia withholds numerous Life Science & Health opportunities, making it both an excellent starting point for Dutch companies that want to enter the ASEAN market, and a fruitful market for those who are already active in the region. Both public and private parties in the country have active ongoing collaborations with the Netherlands. Themes the country has been prioritizing in the last few years include the development of Health-Tech and Tele-Medicine, along with local production.
Additional market information on the ASEAN region can be found in the LSH ASEAN 5 Market Report (published in 2021).
During this trade mission, you will…
… take part in collective visits to relevant LSH stakeholders; such as the ministries of health, leading public- and private hospitals, relevant associations and healthcare facilities.
… take part in seminars/roundtables focused on specific topics matching Dutch and local interest.
… gain insight into entry strategy opportunities for your specific product/service.
… deepen existing relations in the region and strengthen ties with stakeholders you may already have interest in.
… participate in networking receptions where you meet (new) local business contacts (individual matchmaking is optional and against an additional fee).
To increase the quality and success of the mission, there will be a joint programme* at the start of each day, as well as two programmes that run parallel to eachother in the afternoons. This is done to cater to both exploratory stakeholders and stakeholders that want to use this mission to deepen existing relations.
*The programme is still under development and will be announced as soon as it has been made conrete.
Participation fee
The cost of participating in this exploratory visit is as follows:
Participation fee of € 500,- (excl. VAT), per person.
Matchmaking is optional and will be offered against an additional fee of € 250,- (excl VAT) per organization.
This fee includes participation in the collective programme, collective local transport and local support by organizing parties. This fee excludes costs for travel, including possible regional flights, accommodation, meals, translators and individual transportation.
Register today!
If you want to be part of this Dutch LSH delegation please register before April 11th, 2023
Register here.
If you have any remaining questions about the programme, logistics, or financial matters, please contact:
Annelie Oortwijn
Project Manager
+ 31 (0)6 -820 651 43
annelie.oortwijn@tfhc.nl
COVID-19 Clause
Due to rapid developments with regards to COVID-19, there is a risk that the mission cannot take place on the planned date. A Go/No-Go will be given 6 weeks prior to the mission. If the travel advice changes to orange (necessary travels only), the mission will be cancelled or postponed. Note: in favour of the scope and quality of the mission, we reserve the right to accept or decline participants who do not fit within the relevant target group for this mission.
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