In order to implement the “United Nations Convention Against Corruption” on the importance of anti-corruption in the private sectors, the Ministry of Justice continues to deepen exchanges between the public and private sectors, and promotes corporate integrity and legal compliance, so as to reach a consensus between the public and private sectors, further establish an anti-corruption partnership, and improve the international competitiveness of Taiwanese enterprises. The Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Science and Technology, and the Ministry of Economic Affairs organized and held the “2022 Technology Industry Integrity Governance and Trade Secret Protection Summit Forum” on July 19, 2022, which is the first step to develop the “Integrity Platform for Entrerprise Services” contact network of the Ministry of Science and Technology.

The forum kicked off with speeches by Minister Tsai Ching-hsiang of the Ministry of Justice and Deputy Minister Chen Tzong-Chyuan of the Ministry of Science and Technology, followed by Shih Li-cheng, Microsoft Global Assistant Chief Legal Officer and General Manager of the Public and Legal Affairs Department of Microsoft Taiwan (who is also the President of AmCham Taiwan), and Deputy Chief Legal Officer Hsieh Fu-yuan of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Head Prosecutor Lu Hsiang-wu of Taiwan Taoyuan District Prosecutor's Office, and Distinguished Professor Lin Chih-chie of National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University who respectively gave keynote speeches on “Corporate Integrity Governance” and “Trade Secrets Protection”, etc.

Subsequently, Director-General Zhuang, Rong-song of Agency Against Corruption(AAC) presided over the discussion, which invited Director Wang Chun-li of the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau, Director Hung Shu-min of Intellectual Property Office, MOEA, Chief Prosecutor Chang Chie-chin of Taiwan Hsinchu District Prosecutor's Office, Distinguished Professor Lin Chih-chie and MediaTek Co., Chief Legal Officer Su Wen-tang of MediaTek Inc.representing industry, government and academia conducted interdisciplinary discussions and exchanges on topics such as “integrity governance”, “ distinction between unlawful profit seeking and convenience for the public ”, “trade secrets” and “national security”.

In his speech, Minister Tsai Ching-hsiang of the Ministry of Justice mentioned that although Taiwan is not a member of the United Nations, we still follow the content of the United Nations Convention against Corruption and promote the public and private sectors to cooperate in anti-corruption-related actions. In recent years, the Ministry of Justice has continued to work with various agencies to promote forums related to  enterprise integrity and legal compliance, and for major public works, via the establishment of the “Government Procurement Integrity Platform”, experts from public and private sectors and agencies in different fields are invited to fully communicate and solve problems to allow the public works to be fully completed on schedule and with satisfactory quality. This year, the Ministry of Justice further requested AAC to integrate the platform’s open and transparent spirit and successful operation experience to hold the symposium on “Breaking the Myth of Unlawful Profit-seeking and Convenience for the Public” nationwide to enable public servants to actively provide convenient services without any concern of breaking laws. In combination with the various competent authorities to promote the trial implementation of the “Integrity Platform for Enterprise Services”, the cooperative authorities provide consultation on the distinction between “unlawful profit-seeking” and “convenience for the public” that enterprises are concerned about, and allow both parties to communicate on issues of concern to enterprises and work together to solve problems, so as to improve administrative efficiency. In addition, trade secrets are the foundation for the constant development and competitiveness of enterprises. In recent years, we have invited the public and private sectors to participate in relevant seminars and symposiums to jointly promote the protection of trade secrets and allow everybody to understand the importance of such issue.

Deputy Minister Chen Tzong-Chyuan of the Ministry of Science and Technology mentioned that the international situation has changed dramatically in recent years. The Ministry of Science and Technology has embarked on a comprehensive scientific and technological layout with a broader and forward-looking vision at an global scale to guide and lead Taiwan's future social, economic, and technological development.  Enterpriseintegrity has always played the role of the underlying energy of competitiveness and is a constant force driving the development of science and technology. In the future, the Ministry of Science and Technology will continue to deepen exchanges, reach a consensus between the public and private sectors, and promote interdisciplinary cooperation to create an honest and high-quality investment environment, thereby enhancing the overall national competitiveness.

The forum was held in Hsinchu Science Park, which demonstrated the active establishment of public-private partnerships by the public sector to gather strength and reach a consensus. In the future, AAC will continue to combine various competent authorities with the interdisciplinary cooperation network model to jointly promote the  enterprise service works, so that the general public can practically sense the effort and reach a win-win situation for the sustainable development of the nation and enterprises.