Freedom House has ranked Taiwan as Asia’s second-freest place in the 2020 edition of its annual “Freedom in the World” report. Taiwan scored 93 out of a possible 100 points, putting it second only to Japan in the Asian region. China received only ten points. The erosion of democracy in Hong Kong led the territory to lose four points during the past year, with a final score of 55 points.
To reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus COVID-19, all affiliated orchestras and troupes of the Ministry of Culture will postpone their upcoming oversea performances. The Ministry is also urging art event organizers that have planned to invite performance groups from high-risk areas to conduct a comprehensive risk assessment to determine whether the proposed events should proceed.
The International Youth Ambassadors Exchange Program is now open for entries through to the end of next month, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced March 3, spotlighting government efforts to foster the next generation of diplomatic talent.
On January 29 the Taiwanese Women's Youth Ice Hockey Team made history by winning the U18 World Cup Ice Hockey Tournament held in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, for the first time ever.
Taiwan-grown pineapples are heading for food stores across Australia after receiving an import license, according to the Cabinet-level Council of Agriculture March 2, spotlighting government efforts to open new markets around the world for the country’s agricultural produce.
Nine more high-level foreign professionals have been granted ROC (Taiwan) citizenship without having to relinquish their original nationalities, according to the Ministry of the Interior Feb. 26.
The volume of passengers handled at Taiwan's airports last week fell by more than 50 percent compared with the same period last year, amid a global outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus, the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) said Monday. It said passenger volume between Taiwan and two other neighboring countries -- Japan and Singapore -- also dropped last week, due to COVID-19 preventative efforts.
The Youth Cultural Gardeners project is fostering links with regional partners. Shao Sheng Vietnam Traditional Music Ensemble is one of the many beneficiaries of the Ministry of Culture’s Youth Cultural Gardeners project designed to boost exchanges with New Southbound Policy target countries.
The Council of Agriculture says that Taiwan has signed agreements with Australia and New Zealand to recognize each other’s organic produce. The council made the statement on Monday after Taiwan signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Australia in January and with New Zealand in February.
After multiple negotiations and field visits, the Council of Agriculture (COA) has reached a bilateral agreement with both Australia and New Zealand on organic equivalency, which were signed on Jan. 23 and Feb. 26 respectively. The cooperation is expected to boost organic produce trade and agricultural exchanges between Taiwan and the aforementioned countries.
