Hundreds of government officials from 37 countries are to participate in next month’s Smart City Summit and Expo to exchange views on topics such as sustainable development and net zero emissions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.
The events, focusing on the themes digital and green transformation, are to take place from March 19 to 21 at the Nangang Exhibition Center in Taipei and from March 21 to March 23 at the Kaohsiung Exhibition Center.
More than 400 central and local government officials, including 80 mayors or deputy mayors, from 119 cities have been invited to participate, Department of International Cooperation and Economic Affairs Deputy Director Lin Mei-cheng (林美呈) told a news briefing yesterday.
Photo: Screen grab from the Smart City Summit and Expo Web site
In addition, nearly 900 industry representatives of 103 companies, associations or organizations from 32 countries are to take part in the events, she said.
The participants are to learn about Taiwan’s experience in promoting smart city development and exchange views with the nation’s public and private sectors on diverse topics including green energy, sustainable development, smart transportation, medical care and education, she said.
TEXTILE DELEGATION
Separately, the ministry is to form a delegation consisting of representatives from the local textile industry to visit Guatemala next month to explore cooperation opportunities that would benefit both sides, she said.
The visit is part of the ministry’s effort to consolidate Taiwan’s position in the global supply chain, and assist the industrial development of the nation’s diplomatic allies and other partners, she added.
In other news, the International Cooperation and Development Fund (ICDF) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on agricultural cooperation with the Food and Fertilizer Technology Center for the Asian and Pacific Region, the ministry said yesterday.
The MOU, signed on Monday, aims to promote agricultural cooperation between Taiwan and the Asia-Pacific region through the sharing of Taiwan’s achievements in smart agriculture and talent cultivation, ICDF secretary-general Li Chao-cheng (李朝成) said.
Taiwan first sent agriculture technical missions to Vietnam in 1959 to carry out rice farming projects to assist local production, helping lay the foundation for Vietnam to become a rice exporter, he said.
The ICDF last year established a technical mission in the Philippines to help the Southeast Asian nation improve food production, its environment, and public health and nutrition, he added.
The organization’s cooperation with Paraguay to help develop the local orchid industry has also been fruitful.
The ICDF has been cooperating with the South American ally to develop the local orchid industry since 2015 and introduced a public-private partnership model in 2018 to facilitate trade and improve its marketing, Li said.
Taiwan’s technical mission in Paraguay held a Valentine’s Day sale in San Lorenzo from Feb. 9 to Feb. 16, which attracted more than 1,000 visitors, he said.
Orchid exhibitions are also held annually around Mother’s Day in May and the beginning of spring in September, he said, adding that 7,500 orchids were sold during these periods last year, bringing in about US$25,800 in revenue.
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
EVA Airways on Saturday said that it had suspended a pilot and opened an investigation after he allegedly lost his temper and punched the first officer several times as their plane was taxiing before takeoff at Los Angeles International Airport. According to a report published on Thursday by The Reporter, the incident occurred after the flight’s Malaysian first officer tried to warn the Taiwanese pilot, surnamed Wen (文), that he was taxiing faster than the speed limit of 30 knots (55.6kph). After alerting the pilot several times without response, the first officer manually applied the brakes in accordance with standard operating
The New Taipei City Social Welfare Department on Thursday celebrated Paralympic competitor Chen Tzu-wei (張孜維), who received last year’s national Golden Eagle award for exemplary achievement by Taiwanese with disabilities. Chen, who suffers from childhood-onset muscular dystrophy, did not attend the first award ceremony held by the Ministry of Health and Welfare in November due to illness. Chen was formally presented with the award at the department, where he gave thanks to government workers for supporting his education and livelihood, the department said in a statement. Chen was raised by the Ai-hsin Home for Persons with Disabilities in the city’s Bali District (八里)
RSS