Administrative regions in Taiwan will have to become larger to achieve economies of scale and compete on the world stage, Hwang Wang-hsiang, deputy minister of the Cabinet-level Council for Economic Planning and Development said Oct. 12.
Hwang made the remark while attending a two-day seminar on urban planning. The focus of the seminar was on the future of Taiwan after Dec. 25 of this year, when three new special municipalities will come into being and an existing one will be enlarged.
A special municipality enjoys more resources and freedom to operate than a regular city. The three new municipalities are Xinbei City, formed out of what is now Taipei County; Taichung City, formed from the merger of Taichung City and Taichung County; and Tainan City, created out of Tainan City and Tainan County.
Kaohsiung City, which already enjoys special municipality status, will incorporate Kaohsiung County into its domain.
Hwang noted that the new special municipalities were created to make administration of the nation’s various districts more efficient.
He added that cooperation was essential. “When formulating development plans, the new municipalities must learn to cooperate, not only with smaller cities in their vicinity, but also with the central government,” Hwang said. “Such partnership will help the new cities thrive.”
By the year 2026 Taiwan will probably be divided into four large administrative areas, with three on the west coast of the island and one on the east, according to a plan proposed by CEPD’s head of Department of Urban and Housing Development Chang Kuei-Lin.
“By then, transportation plans will be of much larger scale, affect multiple regions and require closer regional participation,” he added.
Several experts from abroad are participating in the seminar to share their experiences in regional planning and administration cooperation models. Among them are Jeanette Wopperer from Stuttgart, Germany, Christa Standecker from Nuremberg, Germany, and Jean-Marie Ernecq from Lille, France. (HZW)
Write to Kwangyin Liu at kwangyin.liu@mail.gio.gov.tw