The Executive Yuan today named the following new deputy ministers for the Ministry of National Defense (MND), Ministry of Education (MOE) and Council of Indigenous Peoples (CIP):
1. Hsia Li-yan, the ROC representative at the Taipei Economic and Trade Office in Indonesia, has been named MND deputy minister.
2. Chen Der-hwa, now serving as MOE administrative deputy minister, shall become the ministry's political deputy minister following the resignation of Chen I-hsing from that post.
3. The vacancy left by Chen Der-hwa is to be filled by Lin Shu-chen, the director of the MOE's Department of Legal Affairs.
4. Finally, CIP Secretary-General and Spokesperson Chen Cheng-jia has been appointed administrative deputy minister of the same agency.
Prior to his posting in Indonesia, Hsia Li-yan, also known as Andrew Hsia, served terms as political division director of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States, director-general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York as well as deputy minister of foreign affairs.
Through his work, Hsia is well acquainted with U.S. scholars and academics such as those in the Heritage Foundation, Brookings Institution, Center for Strategic and International Studies and National Committee on American Foreign Policy. He has maintained long relationships with American officials responsible for weaponry sales to Taiwan, such as former Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell, former Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz and former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage.
Moreover, Hsia has accompanied the ROC president on two diplomatic trips, engineered political and military delegations for overseas visits and attended the South China Sea Conference to elaborate the nation's position on the South China Sea and promote its East China Sea Peace Initiative.
Hsia possesses rich administrative experience, and though he has not previously served in the MND, he has proven very capable of expounding upon the ROC's defense policies, the Executive Yuan noted. Moreover, his rich background in diplomacy will contribute greatly to enhancing MND communication and procurements, officials emphasized.
Chen Der-hwa, the new political deputy minister of the MOE, was the ministry's administrative deputy minister prior to this appointment. He has a Ph.D. in education from National Chengchi University and has been a section chief, senior executive officer, deputy director-general and director-general of the MOE's Department of Higher Education as well as director-general of the Department of Technological and Vocational Education.
During his tenure as administrative deputy minister, Chen formulated policies for fostering and recruiting the nation's talents, oversaw the establishment of an ad hoc supervisory committee, published a white paper on talent cultivation and reviewed flexible salary measures. He has promoted the Aim for the Top University Project, fostered a forward-looking environment conducive to the development of colleges and universities while encouraging innovation. Executive Yuan officials said his background in education makes him well-versed in relevant policies, and he is a steadfast worker who will be able to contribute even more to the nation's education in his new post.
Succeeding Chen as MOE administrative deputy minister is Lin Shu-chen, the director of the MOE's Department of Legal Affairs. After earning her bachelor's degree at the National Taiwan University (NTU) College of Law and master's from the NTU Graduate Institute of National Development, she served as an officer, executive officer, section chief and senior executive officer for the Executive Yuan Legal Affairs Committee and later worked as an MOE counselor and concurrently executive secretary for its Legal Affairs Committee and Petitions and Appeals Committee.
As director of the Department of Legal Affairs, Lin assisted in the legislation of education policies, including the completion of the Early Childhood Education and Care Act and related legislation as well as the Senior High School Education Act, laying the foundation for the 12-year basic education.
Lin's legal expertise has long contributed to the formulation of education law, and as administrative deputy minister she will uphold professionalism, utilize her expertise and review laws, the Executive Yuan stated.
Chen Cheng-jia, the CIP's chief secretary and spokesperson at the time of his appointment, will henceforth serve as the council's administrative deputy minister. He earned a master of business administration from American City University and has held several posts in the Research, Development and Evaluation Commission, including officer, executive officer, section chief and senior executive officer as well as chief and director of the agency's liaison to the news media and Legislature.
While serving at the CIP, Chen has actively promoted the establishment of mechanisms for implementing relevant legislation, courts for indigenous people, and plans to revitalize tribal schools. He has also supervised the execution of rescue programs for endemic indigenous languages whose usage is declining as well as the digital archiving of indigenous culture while working to reduce the digital divide (the discrepancy in access to information and communications technologies) between Taiwan's indigenous peoples and the rest of its population.
Chen began his public service career as a junior civil servant, and he understands citizens' needs and spares no effort in supervising and promoting programs to benefit the indigenous peoples, said the Executive Yuan, which expressed certainty that Chen is up to the task of developing indigenous businesses as the CIP's administrative deputy minister.