President Chen Shui-bian (
In a speech at a ceremony to introduce the Arbor Month campaign, Chen said his administration's infrastructure construction and reform programs in various fields are like "planting saplings to sustain Taiwan's development."
"We hope construction and reform will continue and bring prosperity and good fortune to our people, just as saplings grow strong and blossom," Chen said.
PHOTO: CNA
Noting that trees can symbolize the continuity of hope and the spirit of perseverance, Chen said his administration has spared no effort to boost afforestation and ecological conservation.
"We have been determined to raise the amount of land in Taiwan covered by forest to 60 percent of the island's total land area by 2008," Chen said.
To realize the goal, Chen said, the government last year designated the period from Feb. 4 to March 12 as Taiwan's Arbor Month. This year's campaign plans to establish more than 1.3 million plants and seedlings on some 600 hectares of community parkland and school campuses around the nation.
Many senior officials, including Presidential Office Deputy Secretary-General Chen Che-nan (
They planted saplings at the Hsinta Fishing Port, which has been transformed from a sleepy deep-sea fishing base into one of the largest recreational fishing ports in Southeast Asia. The tree-planting activity also attracted thousands of residents of southern Taiwan to participate.
Tai said that the Council of Agriculture and the nation's eight forest administration bureaus will jointly organize 27 large-scale tree-planting activities in various parts of the island over the course of Arbor Month.
The government designated the day of national founding father Dr Sun Yat-sen's passing as Arbor Day four years after his death in 1925. Today, trees are planted each March 12 in remembrance of Sun's encouragement of afforestation and his contribution to the nation.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
RSS