The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has earmarked NT$73.5 million (US$2.49 million) from next year’s annual budget to purchase a new property for its representative office in Australia.
The ministry has been seeking new properties for its representative offices, and has bought new facilities in Brisbane and Los Angeles, of which it would take possession next year, it said.
The ministry has 109 offices spread across 136 properties worldwide, excluding its offices in Macau and Hong Kong, ministry data showed
However, it rents the majority of the properties. Of the total, only 20, or 17 percent, are owned by the ministry.
Rent for the remaining 116 properties would cost the ministry an estimated NT$892.8 million next year, which does not include housing costs for the officials stationed at the offices, it said.
The Los Angeles property cost the ministry NT$162.62 million and the one in Brisbane cost NT$176.17 million, it said.
Rent costs for representative offices and officials’ accommodations fluctuate along with inflation and annual contract reassessments, and at their peak reached NT$1.3 billion, a source said, adding that a property owner has demanded a rent increase after discovering the property was being rented by officials of a government.
“In cities and countries that are politically important to Taiwan, purchasing [property] is a lot more cost-effective than renting,” Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lo Chih-cheng (羅致政) said on Saturday.
Taiwan’s relations with countries like the US, Japan and Australia are stable, and purchasing properties in such countries would benefit the long-term development of bilateral ties, he said.
DPP Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) suggested that the ministry use an endowment fund model to manage the budget to purchase properties, by setting aside a fixed amount annually, which could be accumulated until the ministry finds a suitable property.
This would prevent a situation in which the ministry could miss a property sale due to lengthy budget evaluations, he said.
The ministry said that it owns part of the property it uses in Australia.
However, due to space limitations, it has to rent additional offices at the property, it said, adding that it hopes to reduce rent expenses by purchasing a larger space.
It would take budget concerns and Australia’s property market into consideration when making a purchase, the ministry said.
The purchase would not only help the ministry save on rent costs, it would also fulfill the ministry’s property needs in the country and provide better protection for national secrets, it said.
ALIGNED THINKING: Taiwan and Japan have a mutual interest in trade, culture and engineering, and can work together for stability, Cho Jung-tai said Taiwan and Japan are two like-minded countries willing to work together to form a “safety barrier” in the Indo-Pacific region, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday said at the opening ceremony of the 35th Taiwan-Japan Modern Engineering and Technology Symposium in Taipei. Taiwan and Japan are close geographically and closer emotionally, he added. Citing the overflowing of a barrier lake in the Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) in September, Cho said the submersible water level sensors given by Japan during the disaster helped Taiwan monitor the lake’s water levels more accurately. Japan also provided a lot of vaccines early in the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic,
Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) on Monday announced light shows and themed traffic lights to welcome fans of South Korean pop group Twice to the port city. The group is to play Kaohsiung on Saturday as part of its “This Is For” world tour. It would be the group’s first performance in Taiwan since its debut 10 years ago. The all-female group consists of five South Koreans, three Japanese and Tainan’s Chou Tzu-yu (周子瑜), the first Taiwan-born and raised member of a South Korean girl group. To promote the group’s arrival, the city has been holding a series of events, including a pop-up
TEMPORAL/SPIRITUAL: Beijing’s claim that the next Buddhist leader must come from China is a heavy-handed political maneuver that will fall flat-faced, experts said China’s requirement that the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation to be born in China and approved by Beijing has drawn criticism, with experts at a forum in Taipei yesterday saying that if Beijing were to put forth its own Dalai Lama, the person would not be recognized by the Tibetan Buddhist community. The experts made a remarks at the two-day forum hosted by the Tibet Religious Foundation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama titled: “The Snow Land Forum: Finding Common Ground on Tibet.” China says it has the right to determine the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation, as it claims sovereignty over Tibet since ancient times,
Temperatures in some parts of Taiwan are expected to fall sharply to lows of 15°C later this week as seasonal northeasterly winds strengthen, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. It is to be the strongest cold wave to affect northern Taiwan this autumn, while Chiayi County in the southwest and some parts of central Taiwan are likely to also see lower temperatures due to radiational cooling, which occurs under conditions of clear skies, light winds and dry weather, the CWA said. Across Taiwan, temperatures are to fall gradually this week, dropping to 15°C to 16°C in the early hours of Wednesday
RSS