President Chen Shui-bian (
Chen made the announcement after meeting with senior executives from six major local industry and commercial associations and three economic think tanks to discuss the possible impact of SARS on the economy.
"We must consider the losses and threats presented by the spread of SARS on the entire industrial and business sector and study short, medium and long-term measures to cope with it," Chen said at the start of the meeting.
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE
With world economic activity slowing and Taiwan's economy straining under the effects of the SARS outbreak, Chen said he decided to create the "Presidential Economic Advisory Panel" and accepted the recommendation of the business leaders that Siew should be its convener.
Chen said that Siew would invite academics, industrial advisors and other professionals to join the team during the next two weeks.
"I completely support President Chen's attempts to revive the economy and it is my honor and pleasure to serve as his personal advisor," Siew said.
The panel will advise the Executive Yuan on various public construction projects, such as a mass transit system for CKS International Airport, and on how to handle the shortage of government funds available to help revive the economy.
Siew, in his role as the chairman of the Chung Hua Institution for Economic Research, was invited to address the meeting on "New Policies for the Recreation of Taiwan's Economy."
Chen said Siew had many good ideas.
"I agreed with Chairman Siew's proposal to hold a world `high-tech fair' in 2008 and after the fair, the location will become an R&D park for international high-tech companies," Chen said.
He also promised to study and implement the "Asia-Pacific Operation Center Plan" proposed by Siew when he was a premier.
Chen asked government agencies including the Mainland Affairs Council to study a plan to allow direct cross-strait freight transportation.
Siew said in his report that the government had worked hard to boost the economy but that there was a gap between the effectiveness of the administration and expectations of the public.
He said the government should look to the New Deal of US president Franklin Roosevelt as a model of what should be done to revive the economy.
Siew was the vice presidential candidate when KMT Chairman Lien Chan (
In response to rumors he was a possible running mate for Chen in next year's presidential election, Siew said it was a ridiculous and impossible suggestion.
"I am retired. It is impossible for me to serve as a government official. I will no longer run for any elections," he said.
The KMT said that it hoped the DPP government would respect Siew's experience and suggestions and not just use him for political gains.
"As the leader of a civil research institute, [Siew] is responsible enough to make proposals," Lien said.
Leaders of the commercial and industrial communities hailed the formation of the panel and expressed confidence that it will be useful in boosting the economy.
Day Sheng-tong (
"The panel should give impetus and provide different mechanisms to help the country ride over the current difficulties and build a post-SARS economy," he said.
ROC General Chamber of Commerce chairman Gary Wang (
Also see story:
Japan has deployed long-range missiles in a southwestern region near China, the Japanese defense minister said yesterday, at a time when ties with Beijing are at their lowest in recent years. The missiles were installed in Kumamoto in the southern region of Kyushu, as Japan is attempting to shore up its military capacity as China steps up naval activity in the East China Sea. “Standoff defense capabilities enable us to counter the threat of enemy forces attempting to invade our country ... while ensuring the safety of our personnel,” Japanese Minister of Defense Shinjiro Koizumi said. “This is an extremely important initiative for
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) today accepted an invitation from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to lead a delegation to China next month, saying she hopes to promote the peaceful development of cross-strait relations and bring stability to the Taiwan Strait. “I am grateful and happy to accept this invitation,” Cheng said in a statement from the KMT chairperson’s office. Cheng said she hopes both sides can work together to promote the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, enhance exchange and cooperation, bring stability to the Taiwan Strait and improve people’s livelihoods. At today's news conference, Cheng said any efforts to
MORE POPULAR: Taiwan Pass sales increased by 59 percent during the first quarter compared with the same period last year, the Tourism Administration said The Tourism Administration yesterday said that it has streamlined the Taiwan Pass, with two versions available for purchase beginning today. The tourism agency has made the pass available to international tourists since 2024, allowing them to access the high-speed rail, Taiwan Railway Corp services, four MRT systems and four Taiwan Tourist Shuttles. Previously, five types of Taiwan Pass were available, but some tourists have said that the offerings were too complicated. The agency said only two types of Taiwan Pass would be available, starting from a three-day pass with the high-speed rail and a three-day pass with Taiwan Railway Corp. The former costs NT$2,800
The nation’s fastest supercomputer, Nano 4 (晶創26), is scheduled to be launched in the third quarter, and would be used to train large language models in finance and national defense sectors, the National Center for High-Performance Computing (NCHC) said. The supercomputer, which would operate at about 86.05 petaflops, is being tested at a new cloud computing center in the Southern Taiwan Science Park in Tainan. The exterior of the server cabinet features chip circuitry patterns overlaid with a map of Taiwan, highlighting the nation’s central position in the semiconductor industry. The center also houses Taiwania 2, Taiwania 3, Forerunner 1 and
RSS