TIPC Evinces Hub Port Strengths and Diplomatic Soft Power as Host of 110th Association of Pacific Ports Conference

The 110th annual Association of Pacific Ports (APP) Conference held this year at the Port of Kaohsiung, TIPC came to a successful close today. This four-day conference (August 11th-14th, 2024) was attended by 72 officials and representatives from 30 ports in nine Asia-Pacific countries. Also, on August 13th, Port of Kaohsiung held a sideline ceremony to mark the signing of new sister port agreements with the Port of Majuro in Taiwan's diplomatic ally the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Port of Long Beach in the United States. The signing ceremony was witnessed by the then MOTC Minister Meng-yen Li and Kaohsiung City Mayor Chi-mai Chen. This year's APP Conference opened on August 11 in Port of Kaohsiung's new Kaohsiung Port Cruise Terminal with a special concert put on by the Evergreen Symphony Orchestra, after which attendees moved over to the main conference venue at the InterContinental Kaohsiung. Activities scheduled during the conference included a Pacific policy forum chaired by the US Maritime Administration, a talk on creating a sustainable future for ports given by Port of Long Beach COO Dr. Noel Hacegaba, updates on recent developments at member ports, and a get-together for port sector businesses.

During the conference, TIPC and APP officials jointly recognized and welcomed Western Pacific ports sharing particularly close ties with Taiwan's international commercial ports, including Busan (South Korea), Kobe (Japan), Naha (Japan), and Tokyo (Japan).

APP Conference host Port of Kaohsiung took the opportunity offered by this year's conference to confirm sister port relationships with two other APP members, namely the US Port of Long Beach and the Marshall Islands Port of Majuro. The ports of Kaohsiung and Long Beach, both major hubs for trans-Pacific shipping, will leverage their new sister port status to strengthen mutual cooperation on green port sustainability. Importantly, Port of Kaohsiung's new sister relationship with the Port of Majuro makes good on a strong hope expressed by ROC President Lai during a state visit to Taiwan in July made by the Speaker of the Nitijela (parliament) of the Republic of the Marshall Islands. Under this new sister port framework, TIPC looks forward to sharing and exchanging port operating experience with the Marshall Islands.

During the conference, TIPC highlighted the results of recent efforts in the realms of smart and sustainable port developments and alternative energy utilization. Evergreen Marine was further invited to share its recent experience installing and operating smart, green wharves at Port of Kaohsiung. Also, a field trip was organized for conference attendees to visit Container Terminals 6 and 7 at Port of Kaohsiung's Intercontinental Container Terminal (ICT).

This year's conference is significantly larger than the last (102nd) hosted by Port of Kaohsiung in 2015, which was attended by 18 officials and representatives from 8 ports in six Asia Pacific Region nations. The increase in attending ports and overseas participants as well as the topical and substantive nature of conference talks and discussions underscore the important "soft power" role of Taiwan's ports in bolstering and growing the nation's international relations profile while strengthening ties between Taiwan's commercial port ecosystem and those of its Asia Pacific peers. TIPC of course arranged for conference attendees to experience Taiwan's local cuisine and culture, with all participants returning home with plenty to share and continue enjoying. The 110th APP Conference ended on a high note with the formal handover of responsibilities to Canada's Port of Nanaimo, which will host the 111th APP Conference next year.

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