Hualien County has been a rising star among the nation’s counties, having been able to repay more than NT$1.2 billion (US$40 million) of its debt and NT$600 million in interest, as well as achieving positive growth in almost all sectors.
In a recent interview with the Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper), independent Hualien County Commissioner Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) said Hualien residents can see with their own eyes how far the county has come during the four years under his governance, rather than just rely on what he called cold statistics.
Fu said he wanted a general and balanced development for the county and that he endeavored to give equal attention to education, finance, environmental protection and the county’s visibility in terms of the international community.
Faced with a daunting NT$13.3 billion debt from the previous commissioner, Fu made debt repayment his primary goal, based on the concept that one should not burden future generations with the debts of their forebears.
Fu’s efforts cleared NT$1.2 billion from the slate and led Hualien to be the only county government to pay back debt for three consecutive years.
“Hualien will only have a future once the county debt has been settled,” Fu said.
Fu said his insistence on paying back debt has not harmed the county’s economic growth; Hualien’s national tax income since he took office has increased by NT$1 billion, or 15 percent, while local revenue has increased by NT$340 million, or 17.4 percent.
Fu also accented the importance of Hualien’s need to connect with the international community and said that his policies have led to exponential growth in international flights passing through Hualien.
The county won second place in the “D” category of Livable Community’s (LivCom) Whole City Awards last year, Fu said, adding that Hualien has made a good start and he hoped to continue to make Hualien a common sight on international event programs.
The LivCom Awards seek to encourage best practices, innovation and leadership in providing a vibrant, environmentally sustainable community that improves the quality of life. The “D” category covers population centers with 150,001 to 400,000 residents.
In terms of education, Hualien was the first county in the nation to implement completely free elementary-school admission by waiving fees for lunch, admission, class aides and books.
Fu has also invested the foremost amount of funding in the county government’s water regulation projects and the its medical tourism industry is also top-notch.
The county’s 3.8 percent unemployment rate is not only lower than the national rate of 4 percent, but the county also ranks second in the nation in the number of people gainfully employed.
Speaking of how he recently visited a pomelo orchard after Typhoon Matmo hit the nation in July, Fu said one of the farmers was extremely touched that he made the visit so soon after the storm.
“I held in my hands the trust the people had [in the county government] and I knew how heavy such burden can be; I hope only to repay their trust with redoubled efforts [on beneficial policies,]” Fu said, adding that he has donated all of his pay as county commissioner every half year.
As of March, he had donated more than NT$8.8 million to help improve the county, he added.
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan