Taiwan is seeing economic growth of 1.6% this year. That was the word from Cheng Cheng-mount, deputy head of the National Development Council, at the Taiwania AI Forum on Wednesday. 

Cheng said that Taiwan’s growth can be attributed to its success in containing COVID-19 and to structural change in its economy in recent years. 

He said Taiwan’s exports, especially tech-related exports, have done well during the pandemic. He also said that Taiwan has been preparing for situations such as remote working and 5G networks in recent years, especially in its emerging industries. 

Also at the event, Chen Liang-gee, the former Minister of Science and Technology, said that Taiwan has a weakness: being led by global companies such as Apple, Samsung, and Huawei to become a part of their supply chain. He said that in the future Taiwan can work on creating and investing in its own products.