Taiwan Hsinchu Science-Based Industrial Park (HSIP)

Since its establishment in 1980, the Hsinchu Science Park (HSP) has strived to develop a favorable environment for investment, to attract high-tech talent, to introduce advanced technologies, and thus to promote domestic industry. HSP, located in Hsinchu of northwestern Taiwan, stretches for 632 hectares over both Hsinchu County and Hsinchu City. The establishment and development of the HSP have achieved the strategic objective of attracting high-tech investment and increasing international competitiveness of Taiwan's high-tech industry. Over past 22 years, the government has invested approximately US$1,006 million in the Park's infrastructure. Following decades of effort, HSP has become to be a paragon of success, not only attracting overseas guests and media, but also becoming a topic of discussion for scholars of economics and rural and urban development. The HSP companies spent USD 1,429 million on R&D in 2001, representing 7.29% of the total sale revenues, above the average R&D investment of 1.3% of revenue by Taiwan's manufacturing industry. Of the R&D spending of USD 1,429 million, the IC industry invested the largest sum, USD 1,017 million, and the biotechnology industry invested most, 20%, as a proportion of revenue. The companies in the Park employed 9,023 R&D related professionals, representing 9.4% of all employees, in which the IC industry employed 4,915 of these researchers. More