Ocean Affairs Council Minister Kuan Bi-ling announced the council’s policies and goals for 2025 while praising its success last year Jan. 22 at a press conference in southern Taiwan’s Kaohsiung City.

The Taiwan International Science Fair got underway Jan. 20 in Taipei City, bringing in record numbers of participants to the largest event of its kind in the country, according to the National Taiwan Science Education Center.

Keelung Port in northern Taiwan welcomed 266,000 foreign visitors in 2024, breaking the previous record of 257,000 arrivals in 2018, the Taiwan International Ports Corp. said in a Jan. 17 release.

The “2025 World Masters Games” will officially begin on May 17. Today (16th), New Taipei City Mayor Hou, Yu-Ih and Taipei City Mayor Chiang Wan-An hosted the “Countdown to 2025 WMG：International Woodball Friendship Tournament,” inviting diplomats and representatives from 19 diplomatic missions and foreign chambers of commerce in Taiwan to experience woodball, a sport that fosters friendships and serves as a warm-up event for the World Masters Games.

The Ministry of the Interior said Jan. 9 that the government is committed to attracting and retaining international professionals by, for example, relaxing permanent residence restrictions and naturalization laws.

Time Out recently announced its Best Places to Visit in Asia in 2025. The magazine, published by the well-known Time Out Group in London, invited local editors and writers to vote and select eight destinations. Tainan is listed as the 4th best place to visit in Asia and the only city in Taiwan selected. Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che remarked that the Tainan 400 event series not only brought out a shared sense of pride among the citizens but also successfully introduced Tainan to the world as an att

The official website of Taiwan’s Ministry of Culture (MOC) is now available in Malay and Thai, in addition to its current versions including English, Japanese, Spanish, French, and Indonesian. Continuing to align with the New Southbound Policy and fostering cultural exchanges with Malaysia and Thailand, the launch of the new websites aims to reach out to a broader audience from Southeast Asian countries to deepen their understanding on the achievements of the cultural exchange programs.

The first national white paper on the prevention of sea contamination was released Dec. 25 by the Kaohsiung City-headquartered Ocean Affairs Council, underscoring the government’s commitment to achieving a pollution-free marine environment by 2030 and promoting the circular economy.

A plan to encourage families to speak Taiwanese in the home was announced by the Ministry of Culture Dec. 25 in Taipei City, highlighting the government’s commitment to preserving the country’s multilingual heritage.

The Council of Indigenous Peoples wrapped up the 2024 international affairs competency development and training program Dec. 25 in southern Taiwan’s Kaohsiung City, highlighting government work to cultivate youth personnel to participate in global affairs.