The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said Thursday that the Central America Regional E-commerce Development Seminar will open next month in Panama, in which Taiwan will share its experience in developing e-commerce with its Central American allies. 'The seminar is being organized to share Taiwan's experience in e-commerce development and the results of its cooperation with countries in the region on the matter, ' said Weber Shih, director-general of MOFA's Department of Economic and Trade Affairs, at a regular press briefing. 'It is also aimed at leveraging the advances of Taiwan's science and technology industry to bring our international cooperation and overseas aid program in line with international trends,' he added. Organized by the Republic of China Embassy in Panama and the government-funded Taiwan International Cooperation and Development Fund, the seminar is scheduled to open Oct. 20, with officials from Taiwan's Central American allies Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua and El Salvador expected to attend, according to Shih. Through exchanges of information among the officials, academics and industries, it is also hoped that Taiwan will be able to explore new business opportunities in the region for its information technology-enabled services, Shih said, adding that the results of the seminar will also be used as reference for future cooperation projects. Meanwhile, fruitful results have been achieved in helping local companies expand overseas markets through trade shows organized by the MOFA and the Taiwan External Trade Development Council in places such as Mongolia and Swaziland, according to Shih. More trade shows are slated to open in September, including in Bulgaria and Saint Vincent, to bring more business opportunities for Taiwan, he added. 