The Executive Yuan on Thursday approved the central government's proposed 2024 general budget plan. Premier Chen Chien-jen said the budget plan was devised according to "zero-based budgeting" principles—requiring expenses to be justified anew regardless of history—and it balances national development with fiscal discipline. Projected annual revenue is NT$2.7092 trillion (US$85.2 billion), a growth of 5% over the 2023 general budget. Projected annual expenditure is NT$2.8818 trillion (US$90.6 billion), a rise of 7.2% over 2023. Both figures are historic highs.
When categorized by budget function, social welfare spending occupies the largest proportion of the proposed budget at 27.5%, the premier said. The next-largest function is education, science and culture (19.5%), followed by economic development (15.1%) and national defense (15%). Central government funding to support local governments will reach NT$901.9 billion (US$28.9 billion), 11.2% greater than in 2023. Public infrastructure projects will be allocated NT$588.6 billion (US$18.9 billion), an increase of 0.3% from this year. The premier added that he hopes central and local governments will continue collaborating with one another to build a more sustainable and prosperous Taiwan.
The premier emphasized that Taiwan's fiscal performance is recognized internationally, with the "Big Three" credit rating agencies Moody's, Fitch Ratings and S&P Global Ratings all giving Taiwan favorable scores. In addition, the 2023 World Competitiveness Yearbook published by the Swiss-based International Institute for Management Development has placed Taiwan sixth overall out of 64 surveyed countries, a climb of 11 places from 17th position in 2018. Within the infrastructure category, Taiwan ranked 12th, rising from 22nd place in 2018, and in the government efficiency category moved up to 6th place, rising from 12th place in 2018.