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Taiwan-U.S. collaboration opens its first SBDC in Asunción to support small businesses in Paraguay
Published Thu Aug. 31, 2023
On August 10, the TaiwanICDF and USAID opened the first of several small business development centers (SBDCs) in Paraguay’s capital to support the nation’s micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). Paraguay has experienced rapid economic development in recent years, but its entrepreneurs have lacked the business management capabilities and technology to oversee the country’s more than 250,000 MSMEs. To address this, the International Cooperation and Development Fund (TaiwanICDF) launched the Project to Strengthen Capacity to Support Development of MSMEs alongside Paraguay’s Ministry of Industry and Commerce, National University of Asunción’s Faculty of Economics, and certain industry groups. This project strengthens MSME consultation mechanisms while promoting their overall development.
The project follows the Arrangement for Technical Cooperation for Micro-, Small-, and Medium-Sized Businesses (MSMEs) in Paraguay, a document written to strengthen cooperation between Taiwan and the US. The arrangement was signed in Washington DC by Representative Bi-khim Hsiao of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office and Managing Director Ingrid D. Larson of the American Institute in Taipei.
Project implementation follows a tripartite cooperation model, wherein Paraguay manages operations, USAID develops the SBDC concept, and the TaiwanICDF provides capacity building through services like business consulting, industrial research, resource matching, and human resource training. Taiwan and the US plan to help Paraguay establish three SBDCs this year, starting with the grand opening of the first center in Asunción in August.
More than 130 guests joined the SBDC’s opening ceremony, including Ambassador José Chih-Cheng Han (Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan) in Paraguay), Ambassador Marc Ostfield (Embassy of the United States in Asunción), Minister Luis Castiglioni (Ministry of Industry and Commerce of Paraguay), Chairman Enrique Duarte (Federation of Industries), Deputy Director Adriana Casati (USAID in Paraguay), and representatives of the Inter-American Development Bank.
The TaiwanICDF will continue to leverage the SBDC concept to support local businesses, as well as strengthen cooperation between Taiwan and the US to assist the development of MSMEs in allied countries.
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- Update: 2023/09/14
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