Due to added production lines, the nation is poised to become second in the world in terms of mask production at the end of this month or early next month, Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said yesterday.
Su made the remarks while inspecting mask manufacturing facilities at Nonwoven Converting Machinery Co (權和機械) in New Taipei City.
Thanks to the efforts of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the nation is set to finish adding 60 mask production lines to its current production capacity at the end of this month or early next month, Su said.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
By then, the nation would be able to produce about 10 million masks per day, he said.
Nine of the production lines would launch today, he added.
Disease prevention is a joint effort, Su said, thanking the company and the Taiwan Machine Tool and Accessory Builders’ Association for helping to boost mask production amid an outbreak of COVID-19 in China.
He also thanked pharmacists for cooperating with the government’s mask rationing policy and for maintaining order when people line up to buy masks, as well as postal workers for delivering masks to every corner of the nation.
All of these efforts have enabled prices to be capped at an affordable NT$5 per mask and kept the number of confirmed cases low, compared with neighboring countries, Su said, adding that the nation’s tenacity has shone through under such harsh conditions.
Asked whether a planned budget for an Executive Yuan program to give people shopping coupons would be sufficient to boost sales after the outbreak is brought under control, Su said that he would ask Executive Yuan Secretary-General Li Meng-yen (李孟諺) and Minister Without Portfolio Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) to determine whether to increase the budget for the coupons or expand their scope.
For example, aside from markets and stores, the coupons could be made redeemable at concert and exhibition venues, whose business has also suffered from the outbreak, he said.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has proposed a tentative budget of NT$2 billion (US$66.6 million) for the coupons, which would translate to each citizen receiving between NT$100 and NT$200 in discounts.
The Ministry of the Interior (MOI) is to tighten rules for candidates running for public office, requiring them to declare that they do not hold a Chinese household registration or passport, and that they possess no other foreign citizenship. The requirement was set out in a draft amendment to the Enforcement Rules of the Public Officials Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法 ) released by the ministry on Thursday. Under the proposal, candidates would need to make the declaration when submitting their registration forms, which would be published in the official election bulletin. The move follows the removal of several elected officials who were
The Republic of China (ROC) is celebrating its 114th Double Ten National Day today, featuring military parades and a variety of performances and speeches in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei. The Taiwan Taiko Association opened the celebrations with a 100-drummer performance, including young percussionists. As per tradition, an air force Mirage 2000 fighter jet flew over the Presidential Office as a part of the performance. The Honor Guards of the ROC and its marching band also heralded in a military parade. Students from Taichung's Shin Min High School then followed with a colorful performance using floral imagery to represent Taiwan's alternate name
FOUR DESIGNATED AREAS: Notices were issued for live-fire exercises in waters south and northwest of Penghu, northeast of Keelung and west of Kaohsiung, they said The military is planning three major annual exercises across the army, navy and air force this month, with the navy’s “Hai Chiang” (海強, “Sea Strong”) drills running from today through Thursday, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The Hai Chiang exercise, which is to take place in waters surrounding Taiwan, would feature P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft and S-70C anti-submarine helicopters, the ministry said, adding that the drills aim to bolster the nation’s offshore defensive capabilities. China has intensified military and psychological pressure against Taiwan, repeatedly sending warplanes and vessels into areas near the nation’s air defense identification zone and across
A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would severely threaten the national security of the US, Japan, the Philippines and other nations, while global economic losses could reach US$10 trillion, National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆) wrote in an article published yesterday in Foreign Affairs. “The future of Taiwan is not merely a regional concern; it is a test of whether the international order can withstand the pressure of authoritarian expansionism,” Lin wrote in the article titled “Taiwan’s Plan for Peace Through Strength — How Investments in Resilience Can Deter Beijing.” Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) intent to take Taiwan by force
RSS