President Ma Ying-jeou met on the afternoon of January 6 with a delegation of Canadian parliamentarians. The president, on behalf of the government and people of the ROC, extended a cordial welcome to the lawmakers and expressed hope that Canada will continue to support our participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), strengthening regional economic integration.
In remarks, President Ma stated that ROC-Canada relations are close and friendly. Following Taiwan's 2008 and 2012 presidential elections, said the president, Canada's foreign minister immediately issued statements of congratulations and recognized our democratic accomplishments, after which Canada also sent delegations to attend both inauguration ceremonies. The ROC representative office in Canada in October 2014 held a reception to mark the ROC's National Day, and 89 members of the Senate and the House of Commons attended the gala, including nine ministers and the speaker of the House. In addition, Taiwan's representative office in Canada also held "Taiwan Night" in March of last year, featuring performances and Taiwan-style cuisine, and six ministers were among 61 Canadian parliamentarians participating in the event. This shows Canada's friendliness and support for the ROC.
President Ma pointed out that Taiwan is Canada's 12th-largest global trading partner, and fifth-largest in Asia. Bilateral trade in 2014 reached nearly US$5.5 billion. Investments in service industries between the two countries are vibrant, including the banking, insurance, wholesale, and retail industries. The president noted that Canada is Taiwan's largest source of nickel, while also serving as its third largest import source of iron, and fifth largest for coal.
President Ma stated that the ROC and Canada introduced a youth working holiday program in 2010 that has been extremely well-received among young people here, with the 1,000 slots available each year falling far short of demand. In November of that same year, Canada began providing visa-free courtesies to ROC nationals, which increased the number of Canada-bound tourists from Taiwan by 18.5% from 2012 to 2013, and 13.1% from 2013 to 2014. That agreement also increased the number of weekly flights between the two countries from 13 to 17, having a positive impact on both sides, he remarked.
The president noted that Taiwan and Canada have completed negotiations on a double taxation avoidance agreement (ADTA), and he hopes that the two nations will sign that agreement soon, along with starting negotiations on a bilateral foreign investment protection agreement. Both sides have also reached a consensus that after signing the ADTA, they will quickly commence negotiations on a foreign investment protection agreement. Looking ahead, he expressed hope that based on that foundation, the two countries will explore an economic cooperation agreement, thereby further enhancing bilateral economic and trade ties.
Mentioning the ROC's efforts and determination to join regional economic integration mechanisms such as the TPP and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), President Ma stressed that the ROC is the world's 19th-largest trading nation and 26th-largest economic entity. He pointed out that Canada is not only a major member of the TPP, but like Taiwan is also a member of the WTO and APEC. The president then called on Canada to continue to help Taiwan join the TPP and support our participation in the second round of TPP negotiations, thereby accelerating regional economic integration.
President Ma stated that since taking office in 2008 he has worked to improve relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, thus making current cross-strait relations more peaceful and stable than they have ever been over the past 66 years. In recent years, trade between the two sides each year reached about US$170 billion, with Taiwan enjoying a trade surplus of US$70 billion. So over the past seven-plus years, Taiwan registered an aggregate trade surplus of over US$550 billion with mainland China. The president then mentioned that the annual number of mainland tourists visiting Taiwan was less than 300,000 prior to his taking office, while it was over four million last year. In addition, the number of mainland students studying in Taiwan jumped from about 800 before 2008 to over 35,000 last year, a 40-fold increase. This has allowed young people from both sides to form friendships at an early stage of their life, thus helping promote sustainable peace in the Taiwan Strait, the president noted.
President Ma also mentioned the Next Generation Well-Being Index, a survey released by the global payments company MasterCard. In terms of overall levels of well-being for the next generation, who will be 30 or under by the year 2030, Taiwan scored 80 in the index, the highest among nations in the Asia-Pacific region. This has given us greater confidence in the results of our efforts. The president believes that if we continue to maintain the current state of peace and prosperity in the Taiwan Strait and Asia, Taiwan's young people will be very likely to become the happiest generation in 2030.
The delegation included Canadian Senator Thanh Hai Ngo, as well as Members of Parliament Wayne Easter, Hedy Fry, Deepak Obhrai, Peter Julian, Jim Hillyer, and Pierre-Luc Dusseault.