At a Cabinet meeting today, Premier Lin Chuan underscored the importance of a new agricultural paradigm for Taiwan's economic development, adding that new agriculture is an integral part of the "five plus two" industrial innovation projects proposed by President Tsai Ing-wen.
After a briefing by the Council of Agriculture (COA) on its new agriculture promotion project, the premier directed the responsible agencies to swiftly implement elements of the project that do not require legal amendments, and set schedules and track the progress of those tasks. For measures that do involve legislation such as passage of the agricultural insurance bill and organic farming bill, he instructed the COA to thoroughly communicate with the public about the issues and submit draft bills to the Executive Yuan as early as possible.
For tasks requiring interministerial cooperation, the premier directed Minister without Portfolio Chang Jing-sen to help the COA establish a coordination platform and draft an action plan. The premier also called for active support from the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Ministry of Education, Environmental Protection Administration and Financial Supervisory Commission to develop a new agricultural model for Taiwan.
According to the COA, the four-year project centers on the values of innovation, employment, distribution and sustainability and consists of three main tasks: building a new agricultural paradigm, establishing agricultural safety systems and bolstering marketing capabilities. It will employ technological innovation to add greater value to agricultural products and services, safeguard the welfare and benefits of farmers, advocate recycling and reuse of resources, and promote ecological and environmental sustainability. By building a modernized agricultural sector, the government hopes to not only advance the well-being of farmers but also promote safe agriculture while bringing prosperity to farming communities.
By the end of 2020, the project is expected to lift Taiwan's food self-sufficiency rate to 40 percent, generate an additional production value of NT$43.4 billion (US$1.37 billion), create as many as 370,000 jobs, and increase the share of agricultural product exports going to emerging markets to 57 percent, the COA said.