Taiwan is on track to become a “super-aged” society with 20% of the population over the age of 65 by 2025. This process will have an enormous impact throughout the economy, ranging from healthcare to robotics to housing and the food industry. The discussion of the aging population often centers on the drain that senior…
Lack of demand stymies a sector that would seemingly be ripe for development in rapidly aging Taiwan. The Chang Gung Health and Cultural Village retirement facility has the feel of a college campus. Set amid the wooded hills of Taoyuan County, the sprawling complex has numerous sports and leisure facilities, dining halls and restaurants, convenience…
The rise in the number of elderly in Taiwan is often broadly couched as a demographic and economic challenge. But for the millions of families struggling to care for frail and disabled family members, the struggle is all too personal. Confucian cultural values of “filial piety” forbid the placement of elders in retirement homes or…
Transitional Justice Vice Chair Resigns Vice chairman of the Transitional Justice Commission (TJC) Chang Tien-chin resigned over comments, made at a private meeting that were leaked to the press, in which he proposed using the TJC to smear a candidate in the November elections. The TJC, under the Executive Yuan, is an independent body charged…
AstraZeneca Plans Major Investments Observing the 70th anniversary of its presence in Taiwan, pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca announced plans to invest an additional NT$1 billion (over US$32 million) here in the next three years. AstraZeneca Taiwan president Simon Manners said the company will launch 10 new medicines by 2021, three of which have received priority approval…
More Budget Sought for F-16 Upgrades Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense announced plans September 7 to raise the budget for upgrading the air force’s fleet of U.S.-procured F-16 multi-role combat aircraft from NT$129.6 billion (US$4.21 billion) to NT$140.2 billion (US$4.56 billion). The fleet of 115 F-16 jets is being upgraded by Lockheed Martin from the…
U.S.-China Trade War Draws Attention News reports indicate that at a number of Taiwanese firms are considering abandoning their Chinese production bases and returning to Taiwan to avoid being caught in the U.S.-China trade war. Although Taiwan has not been directly targeted by either country, many Taiwanese manufacturers have moved their production sites to China,…
A leading engineering company seeks to reposition itself. If you’ve ever ridden on the Taipei MRT, filled up your car with gasoline, or even turned on the lights in your home or office, then you’ve experienced the work of Taiwan’s largest engineering services company, CTCI Corp. With annual revenues exceeding US$2.4 billion, and over 40…
Taiwan aims to provide 20% of electrical power generation from renewable energy sources by 2025. In recent months, Taiwan has made significant strides towards achieving its goal of developing large-scale offshore wind-power resources. The government’s plans call for installing as many as 500 giant wind turbines in the Taiwan Strait in order to reach 3…
Taiwan’s Indigenous Formosan Mountain Dog “Don’t be mad,” my wife said one afternoon in an unexpected phone call telling me that our 16-year-old daughter had found a puppy on the street near our home. “There are signs up in the neighborhood and somebody is looking for him. Can we keep him until we find the…
