This year, the ICCA Congress transforms into a hybrid experience. With 800 attendees, 30 sessions, 40 speakers, 80 associations, and a six weeklong congress programme ICCA are reimagining the future of global events. As part of the interactive congress Road to Kaohsiung programme, Taiwan invites the global ICCA community to connect and explore new ideas, formats and technologies.

The Kaohsiung Protocol is a framework identifying significant trends and key strategies which will enable the international meetings industry to thrive, now and into the future. You can join a live event at a regional hub on 1–3 November. The hub locations are Cape Town, Kuching, Latin America, Luxembourg, Malaga, North America and Riyadh.

In the first half of the year, Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) postponed or cancelled its trade shows considering the health and safety of exhibitors and visitors, as well as following the Central Epidemic Prevention Policy.

To provide the latest information about Taiwan International Trade Shows to domestic and international exhibitors and buyers, TAITRA launched a series of integrated online services. It is including Online 2D/VR Exhibition, Preshow Online Sourcing Meetings, Taiwan Trade Shows Webinars, TTS Insights Online Series (in Chinese). Online New Product Launches to meet exhibitors’ demand for international marketing and buyers’ procurement needs.

The exhibition organiser offers exhibitors participating in this year’s 19 trade shows online services. Exhibitors that have used the service are, for example, Taipei Cycle, Autotronics Taipei, AG Expo, Computex Taipei, Medical Taiwan, Foodtech Taipei, Bio/Pharmatech Taiwan, Taipei Pack and Taiwan Horeca.

Amid the human and economic toll inflicted by Covid-19, Taiwan’s response to the pandemic stands out as a model for the way forward. While most countries, including some of the world’s biggest economies with vastly greater resources at their disposal, continue to struggle with fresh outbreaks, Taiwan has managed to flatten the curve.

“Taiwan has responded on both humanitarian grounds and as a member of the global community. To that end, TAITRA has established the ‘Anti-Covid-19 Pavilion,’ an online platform that integrates more than 2,000 industries, manufacturers and medical institutions related to pandemic prevention,” says Walter Yeh, TAITRA’s President and CEO. “The Pavilion provides one-stop medical resources to the world for helping fight this pandemic.”

Taiwan’s government achieved early success in limiting the outbreak within its shores with a range of proactive measures, including educating the public and implementing stringent protocols around quarantining, testing and treating its population.

While some companies are intensifying efforts to produce safety equipment, such as face masks and personal protective equipment (PPE), others are offering a variety of technological solutions. These include thermal imaging devices to detect fevers, robots to assist healthcare professionals. These testing kits expedite results and harnessing cloud technology to deliver solutions such as telemedicine and remote learning tools, which are proving invaluable at a time when most of the world’s population is under lockdown.

Now, nearly eight months since the first case emerged in Taiwan, life has mostly reverted to normal, with bars, stores, restaurants and professional sport all open for business, albeit with the requisite precautions.

There are three key lessons to take from Taiwan’s experience and replicate them for an effective response, according to Walter Yeh. These are contact-tracing, testing and quarantine or isolation-treatment.

“Effective execution of these measures hinges on effective leadership and strong public health infrastructure. Taiwan is ready and open to provide insights into epidemic prevention. Other nations could learn from Taiwan’s success, and together, we can make this happen,” says Walter Yeh.