The annual Global Health Forum in Taiwan opened yesterday in Taipei, with Vice President Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) saying that the nation is looking forward to strengthening Asia-Pacific ties to increase cooperation in the areas of medicine and health, and promoting health-related industrial links.
The theme of the forum is “Resilience: New Challenges and Opportunities for Global Health.”
Taiwan is a member of the global public health community and it has taken the annual forum seriously for the past 14 years, Chen said.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
Many nations are facing the challenges brought by rapidly aging populations and high prevalence of chronic diseases that call for better medical and public health environments as well as social welfare services, he said.
Chen praised the National Health Insurance program for its nearly universal coverage and effective financial management, achieving the goal of equal healthcare for all.
He said the most challenging public health issue the nation faces is its aging society, as more than 20 percent of the population is forecast to be older than 65 by 2026, so the government is pushing its 10-year Long-term Care Service Program 2.0 to tackle the issue.
Taiwan has an advanced and high-quality healthcare system and disease prevention network, as well as world-class pharmaceutical and medical equipment industries, Chen said.
The approval this year of Taiwan’s application to become a member of the International Conference on Harmonization of Technical Requirements for Registration of Pharmaceuticals for Human Use shows that these achievements are internationally recognized, he said.
Taiwan, building on its cooperation with other nations, is using the government’s New Southbound Policy to promote cooperation on healthcare with India and ASEAN members, and looks forward to strengthening regional ties with Asia-Pacific countries in healthcare.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare said the forum invited 68 speakers from 34 nations, adding that more than 1,200 specialists and officials from around the world are expected to take part in the two-day event.
The Taipei MRT is open all night tonight following New Year’s Eve festivities, and is offering free rides from nearby Green Line stations. Taipei’s 2025 New Year’s Eve celebrations kick off at Taipei City Hall Square tonight, with performances from the boy band Energy, the South Korean girl group Apink, and singers Gigi Leung (梁詠琪) and Faith Yang (楊乃文). Taipei 101’s annual New Year’s firework display follows at midnight, themed around Taiwan’s Premier12 baseball championship. Estimates say there will be about 200,000 people in attendance, which is more than usual as this year’s celebrations overlap with A-mei’s (張惠妹) concert at Taipei Dome. There are
LOOKING FOR WHEELS: The military is seeking 8x8 single-chassis vehicles to test the new missile and potentially replace the nation’s existing launch vehicles, the source said Taiwan is developing a hypersonic missile based on the Ching Tien (擎天) supersonic cruise missile, and a Czech-made truck has been tentatively selected as its launch vehicle, a source said yesterday. The Ching Tien, formerly known as Yun Feng (雲峰, “Cloud Peak”), is a domestically developed missile with a range of 1,200km to 2,000km being deployed in casemate-type positions as of last month, an official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. The hypersonic missile to be derived from the Ching Tien would feature improved range and a mobile launch platform, while the latter would most likely be a 12x12 single chassis
UP AND DOWN: The route would include a 16.4km underground section from Zuoying to Fongshan and a 9.5km elevated part from Fongshan to Pingtung Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday confirmed a project to extend the high-speed rail (HSR) to Pingtung County through Kaohsiung. Cho made the announcement at a ceremony commemorating the completion of a dome at Kaohsiung Main Station. The Ministry of Transportation and Communications approved the HSR expansion in 2019 using a route that branches off a line from Zuoying Station in Kaohsiung’s Zuoying District (左營). The project was ultimately delayed due to a lack of support for the route. The Zuoying route would have trains stop at the Zuoying Station and return to a junction before traveling southward to Pingtung County’s Lioukuaicuo Township (六塊厝).
Parts of the nation, including in the south, could experience temperatures as low as 7°C early tomorrow morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. A strong continental cold air mass coupled with the effect of radiative cooling would bring cold weather to several northern cities and counties, and could even affect areas as far south as Tainan early tomorrow, the CWA said. Keelung, Taipei, New Taipei City and Taoyuan, and Hsinchu, Miaoli and Yilan counties would experience temperatures below 10°C until this evening, according to cold surge advisories issued by the weather agency. The weather across the nation is forecast to remain
RSS