A water-supply system funded by Taiwan has been inaugurated in Sao Tome and Principe, one of the nation’s diplomatic allies in Africa, with the aim of resolving long-standing water problems at the country’s military headquarters, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.
Ambassador John Chen (陳忠) told the opening ceremony that Taiwan was pleased to continue its cooperative programs with Sao Tome and Principe and would assist with other infrastructure projects once the government’s budget allows for it.
The contractor for the water system, a company called ABC, said the two storage tanks with a total capacity of 105,000 liters will be able to supply the military headquarters with water for an estimated 72 hours if the main water system fails.
Meanwhile, Taiwan recently launched an initiative in Haiti, another of the nation’s allies, to develop a white-sand beach called Point Sable in the south of the country.
Ambassador to Haiti Hsu Mien-sheng (徐勉生) said the beach had great tourism potential and expressed the hope that private businesses would join in developing the area.
In related developments, a local religious foundation delivered relief supplies yesterday to residents of a slum in South Africa whose homes were razed in a fire.
The Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation said its South African branch had visited a slum area called Langa near Cape Town to distribute blankets, flour, oil and sugar to the residents of more than 470 households.
The residents of the slum have been forced to stay in tents since losing their homes in the fire earlier this month.
The foundation said that since last week it had distributed hot meals every day to some 2,000 people in the area.
It said it was also taking the opportunity to raise awareness among children in the area of the importance of environmental protection.
The foreign ministry, whose overseas staff also helped with the distribution of the supplies, said that travelers from the Netherlands who happened to be in the area at the time of the fire had made a donation to support the relief efforts.
Meanwhile, closer to home, Taiwan’s business association in the Philippines donated 50 wheelchairs earlier this month to Makati City as part of its efforts to improve the lot of the country’s marginalized minorities.
Makati and Taichung are sister cities, the ministry said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Tropical Storm Fung-Wong would likely strengthen into a typhoon later today as it continues moving westward across the Pacific before heading in Taiwan’s direction next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 8am, Fung-Wong was about 2,190km east-southeast of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving westward at 25kph and possibly accelerating to 31kph, CWA data showed. The tropical storm is currently over waters east of the Philippines and still far from Taiwan, CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said, adding that it could likely strengthen into a typhoon later in the day. It is forecast to reach the South China Sea
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
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