Sat, Aug 22, 2026 page3

• Indigenous groups unequally affected by energy poverty

  • By Jonathan Chin / Staff writer, with CNA
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  A National Taiwan University study found that energy poverty affects 52.2 percent of disadvantaged households in Taiwan’s designated indigenous areas, higher than 42.9 percent of indigenous households in Han-majority areas.

  The university’s Risk Society and Policy Research Center conducted the survey from January to March, using questionnaires to poll 578 disadvantaged indigenous households, the research team told a news conference on Thursday.

  The study was a partnership with World Vision Taiwan, which assists the households surveyed.

  

  Members of National Taiwan University’s Risk Society and Policy Research Center present research at a news conference in Taipei on Thursday.

  Photo: Wu Po-hsuan, Taipei Times

  Shih Yi-jen (施奕任), a post-doctoral fellow at the institute, said that the EU defines energy poverty as using more than 10 percent of all income on electricity.

  The study revealed significant structural inequality facing disadvantaged rural residents and ethnic minorities in Taiwan, he said.

  It showed that the median monthly household energy costs surged to NT$2,492, up from NT$1,960 in off-season months, marking a 27.1 percent increase, Shih said.

  The steep rise in the cost of energy resulted from seasonal electricity price hikes and high temperatures, with a stark increase in the number of households spending more than NT$2,501 a month on energy, he said.

  About 57.3 percent of families polled have been in arrears on power bills at least once, and 2.9 percent had their power cut off due to non-payment, Shih said.

  It suggested that 32.4 percent of households that have air-conditioning reported barely managing or struggling to pay for their use, and a large share of the households were using old, inefficient systems, he said.

  According to the study, 37 percent of the families reported not being able to afford repairing their home air-conditioning system, he said.

  Government subsidies for replacing obsolete, power-wasting appliances have limited effect, as 42 percent of households surveyed reported not knowing about the program, he said.

  Another 10.2 percent said they knew of the program, but could not afford to replace their air-conditioner even with the subsidy, he said.

  This traps impoverished families in a spiral of having to pay more for less, Shih said.

  The survey found that 65.1 percent were opposed to the proposed policy of raising electricity costs to facilitate energy transition, and that 29.6 percent reported being willing to support the policy if the price increase is marginal, he said.

  Lin Chia-nan (林嘉男), associate professor in National Taitung University’s Department of Public and Cultural Affairs, said the government has long neglected the needs of indigenous people.

  The distribution of the nation’s energy infrastructure reflects the structural inequality that diverted resources away from indigenous people, who have little say in energy policy, he said.

  The energy poverty of indigenous Taiwanese communities exposed a “green energy colonialism” that forced ethnic minorities to absorb the costs of the energy transformation, he said.

  The government is urged to pay more attention to the needs of indigenous communities when deciding on energy policy, he said.
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