Taipei, July 24 (CNA) The APEC Digital Opportunity Center (ADOC), an initiative submitted by Taiwan in 2003 at an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting, has been helping bridge the digital divide in APEC countries, representatives from seven APEC economies said Tuesday at the 2007 ADOC Plenary.
The plenary is a part of "ADOC Week, " which is taking place in Taipei from July 24-27. Delegations from Chile, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam will also attend an ADOC forum and an ADOC award ceremony.
Taiwan took on a "daunting challenge" in helping bridge the digital divide in various partner countries by establishing ADOC centers, representative from the Philippines said. Delegates said over 1,100 people in Papua New Guinea and 5,000 people in Peru have been trained by the center.
IT use and language skills are important elements for developing countries and Taiwan is helping with the former, said Juan Carlos Capunay, deputy executive director of the APEC Secretariat from Peru.
"ADOC's contributions over the past three years are both impressive and significant with the establishment and operation of 19 ADOC partner offices in seven economies and a focus on small- and medium-sized enterprises and education, " Capunay told more than 200 delegates in his remarks.
The ADOC initiative was submitted by former Academia Sinica President and Nobel laureate Lee Yuan-tseh as the Taiwan representative at the 2003 APEC meeting in Bangkok, that looked to transform the digital divide into digital opportunities in the first stage from 2004 -- 2006. In the second stage from 2007 -- 2008, the initiative aims at developing e-commerce and e-trade in various countries.
The one-day forum slated for Wednesday will focus on the theme of "bridging the digital divide" and a number of international and local speakers will be invited to share their thoughts and experiences.
The ADOC awards consist of trophies to recognize the best information and communication technology practices from 18 cases selected from six countries.
Taiwan's devotion to the initiative is beneficial to local businesses as well, said officials from the Institute for Information Industry -- the main organizer of the event. The platform provides Taiwanese IT companies with opportunities to work with ADOC members.