Hainan reaches out to Taiwan for cooperation

Hainan will promote exchanges and cooperation with Taiwan in modern agriculture, high-tech and modern services under a plan recently formulated by the Hainan provincial government welcoming Taiwan compatriots' participation in developing the Hainan free trade port.

Under the plan, Hainan will use its key industrial parks to enhance communications between the two regions highlighting education, medical care, modern agriculture and the development and protection of marine resources.

Hainan is one of the areas in which Taiwan-funded businesses have gathered and grown on the Chinese mainland. There are currently more than 1,900 Taiwan-funded enterprises, or projects registered in Hainan, mainly involving farming, agricultural product processing, tourism, transportation, catering, medical treatment, new energy and biotechnology, the provincial government reported.

Under the plan, Hainan will give full play to the advantages of the island as a cross-Straits agricultural cooperation pilot zone to attract Taiwan compatriots to invest in modern agriculture and encourage more Taiwan businesses to introduce their seedling varieties, advanced technology and management experience to Hainan.

Exchanges and cooperation between Hainan and universities in Taiwan will also develop. Excellent teachers from Taiwan will be recruited and enrollment of Taiwan students will expand.

Taiwan's educational institutions will be encouraged to participate in setting up the Hainan Lingshui Li'an International Education Innovation Pilot Zone, and to jointly run schools with Taiwan universities in Hainan.

Hainan will make full use of the preferential policies advantages of the Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone to encourage research and broaden the application of new medical technology, equipment and medicine from Taiwan.

Also, Hainan will support and explore cooperation with Taiwan in health — including management, health vocational education and health technology — based on sole proprietorship, joint ventures or cooperation, the plan said.

Meanwhile, financial institutions in Taiwan will be invited to set up regional headquarters and branches in Haikou Jiangdong New District and the Sanya Central Business District, two major industrial parks in the Hainan free trade port. Support will be granted to Taiwan enterprises that apply for small and medium-sized financial guarantee companies to provide loan solutions for Taiwan businesses. Taiwan businesses and enterprises will be supported to set up international trading places for energy, shipping, bulk commodities, property rights, equity and carbon emission rights in Hainan.

The island province will also develop new tourism business formats that are closely in line with the characteristics of Hainan and Taiwan as tropical islands and the policy requirements of the Hainan free trade port, such as homestays, coastal and rural tourism projects and creative cultural businesses, the plan said.