Taipei, Aug. 11 (CNA) President Chen Shui-bian said Monday his administration's economic stimulus drive has paid off, with the domestic economy regaining momentum and expected to register 3 percent to 3.5 percent growth this year.
Chen made the remarks while presiding over the second meeting of a presidential economic advisory panel headed by Vincent Siew, a former premier and an incumbent vice chairman of the opposition Kuomintang, who concurrently serves as chairman of the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CHIER).
Quoting official tallies, Chen said, all major domestic economic indicators, ranging from export and import trade, financial market indexes to private consumption, have shown signs of recovery.
Against this backdrop, Chen said, major local economic think tanks forecast that this year's economic growth rate will exceed 3 percent and that the rate will be even higher next year.
Chen said the higher-than-expected growth rate indicates that the government's efforts to revitalize the economy and overhaul the financial system have paid off.
During the meeting, Siew delivered a CHIER-prepared report on Taiwan's agricultural modernization plan and another advisory panel member, Wu Rong-i, president of the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research, reported on the nation's present economic situation and its future development prospects.
After listening to their reports, Chen gave several directives for future government work, including phasing out unnecessary restrictions on economic activities and capital flow to buoy the nation's economic vitality and sharpen its overall competitive edge.
Chen said the government should release unused or seldom-used land and other resources for more efficient use, accelerate infrastructure construction, step up banking reforms, establish free trade harbor zones and build high-quality recreational facilities to boost tourism.
As for the much-anticipated agricultural modernization, Chen said Taiwan must pay more heed to "species, quality and brand" in agricultural and fishery production. "The government should help local farmers and aquaculture operators in selecting high value-added species or strains for cultivation and breeding and build up unique brand names for their products," Chen said.
Noting that Taiwan's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) has brought both challenges and opportunities, Chen said the government should pool its resources with farming groups and academic institutes in developing biotechnologies to upgrade competitiveness of local agricultural and fishery industries.
Through joint efforts of county governments, local universities and agricultural and fishery associations, Chen said, several unique cluster production areas, such as the Pingtung tropical agricultural park, the Changhua floral industry park, the Tainan orchid farm and the Ilan marine resources park, have gradually taken shape. "All these clusters are a model for our future agricultural development, " Chen said, adding that agricultural production must be associated with research, entrepreneurship and tourism to reinvigorate rural development.
Chen said his administration will contribute more funds and energies to helping farmers and fishermen establish computerized databanks on farm produce and fishery products production and consumption as well as modernize marketing, warehousing and distribution services.
As the first step, Chen said, the government will select orchids, wax apples and mangoes as "flagship" products to be subject to intensified export promotion.
Other members of the advisory panel, including Taiwan Thinktank Chairman Chen Po-chih and CHIER President Chen Tien-chih, also attended the meeting. Other participants included Vice Premier Lin Hsin-i, National Security Council Secretary-General Kang Ning-hsiang, and Chiou I-jen, secretary-general to the president.