Taiwan is ranked second on a list of attractive destinations for Muslim travelers, the Global Muslim Travel Index showed on Wednesday.
Taiwan and the UK were tied for second on the list of non-Organization of Islamic Cooperation destinations for Muslims, scoring 57, trailing only Singapore’s 69.
Thailand (55), Hong Kong (54), South Africa (51) and Japan (48) were fourth to seventh, while France, Germany, the Philippines and the US shared eighth with scores of 46.
Overall, Taiwan ranked 25th among 140 destinations, with Malaysia on top with a score of 80, followed by Turkey (77) and Saudi Arabia (76).
“In some destinations such as Taiwan, the number of halal-certified restaurants has tripled during the last five to six years,” the report said.
The overall score is based on 13 criteria, among which Taiwan received 100 points for its lack of faith restrictions and 99 points for safety, the report said.
Taiwan scored 71 for destination marketing, sharing top spot with Malaysia, and 50 points for prayer areas, an increase of 26 points from its previous rating, the Tourism Bureau said in a statement.
Overall, Taiwan’s ranking this year was the highest since the index was launched in 2015 by Mastercard and CrescentRating, the bureau said.
The government has been creating a Muslim-friendly environment to tap into a 1.9 billion-person travel market, adding Muslim-friendly facilities and encouraging the hotel and food industries to apply for halal certification, the bureau said.
Its efforts have provided convenience for the 280,000 Muslims living in Taiwan, most of them migrant workers from Southeast Asia, the bureau said.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
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