The 44th Asia Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC) was held in Taichung from September 7-14. Taking place in Taichung for the first time, the event attracted 485 international IT experts from 43 countries to share major trends in the future of network development. When attending the function, Mayor Lin commented that holding the APNIC meeting in Taichung for the first time this year has set an important milestone for Taichung on its way to becoming a smart city. It is hoped that the event will be used to market Taichung, and a long-term collaborative relationship can be established between APNIC and TWNIC (Taiwan Network Information Center), thereby building Taichung into a smart city together.

Dignitaries attending the opening ceremony included: MOTC Minister Chen-tan Ho, Mayor Chia-lung Lin, Economic Development Bureau Director Yao-chih Lu, APNIC EC Chairman Gaurab, APNIC Director General Paul Wilson, TWNIC Chairman Jung-sung Lin, Cisco Systems Senior VP Anand Oswal and APNIC chief scientist Geoff Husto.

This year’s APNIC meeting explores important subjects including IPv6 and DNS, focusing on potential opportunities and challenges that lie ahead in terms of the sustainable network development in the Asia Pacific region. The meeting’s agenda is divided into workshops and formal conferences; formal conferences involve forums, open policy discussions and APNIC member meetings centered on major issues in network development, bringing online communities and organizations from across the Asia Pacific region and the globe together, creating an exchange platform for them to share their opinions.

According to Mayor Lin, holding the APNIC meeting in Taichung for the first time this year has set an important milestone for Taichung on its way to becoming a smart city, because APNIC is a Regional Internet address Registry (RIR) for the Asia Pacific region, responsible for stipulating Internet related regulations, and it has direct influence on IoT development in Taiwan. This year, by gathering innovation R&D experts under one roof, they not only witnessed Taichung’s progress by leaps and bounds but also proposed valuable suggestions regarding building a smart city and developing the IoT industry. On the other hand, the city government intends to use this opportunity to introduce advantages of Taichung to the world, including the smart manufacturing center and 60 km stretch of golden rift valley at the foot of Dadu Mountain etc.

He also pointed out that many experts were surprised to discover that the camera lens and numerous chips found inside prominent international brand iPhone came from Taiwan, many of which are manufactured in Taichung. This is advantageous for Taichung in building a good reputation internationally, hence the city government has organized itineraries for them to become acquainted with Taichung, in turn marketing Taichung to the world. It is hoped that Taichung will continue forging long term collaborations with APNIC and TWNIC in becoming a smart city.

According to Economic Development Bureau Director Yao-chih Lu, APNIC EC Chairman Gaurab and APNIC Director General Paul Wilson have visited Taichung over 2 years ago, expressing their hope to move this year’s conference to Taichung after Taipei and Kaohsiung. During the discussion, they were astonished to discover the diverse array of manufacturing industries in Taichung. After Taichung became the second largest metropolis in Taiwan, it is hoped to take advantage of the vast consumer market to promote the application of IPv6 and the issue of information security on the Internet was also explored in great depth. They expect that the local manufacturers in Taichung will be able to work closely with APNIC in the future.

Director Lu commented that the 44th APNIC conference is immense in scale, almost tripling the number of participants when the event was held in Kaohsiung 11 years ago. This year, 485 international experts from 230 organizations across 43 countries attended the conference in Taichung. It is believed that this will boost Taichung’s international visibility significantly and facilitate its transformation into a smart city.

Economic Development Bureau stated that in an effort to build a smart city, the city government has signed a smart city MOU with Cisco in 2015 to forge collaboration on aspects including Smart Operations Center, Wireless Network, Smart Transportation, Smart Parking, Smart Streetlight and Smart Policing etc. The aim is to foster industry transformation and upgrade continually.

As the second largest city in Taiwan, Taichung offers advantages such as transportation infrastructure, social welfare, cultural education and industry vivacity. In particular, the city government has received support from the Executive Yuan, where the city government’s budget is combined with the central government’s budget of NT$ 10 billion to construct the Shuinan International Convention Center, in hopes of holding more international conventions, exhibitions in Taichung and attracting more tourists at the same time, thereby transforming Greater Taichung into a convention and exhibition city.

The World According to GaWC 2016, published by internationally renowned research institute GaWC, listed Taichung as an international livable city for the first time. Tonight, the City Hall will host a welcoming banquet at the National Taichung Theater, inviting international participants to experience the aesthetics of one of the “world's nine new architectural landmarks” in Taichung.