Department of Information and Tourism, Taipei City Government

The first city-sponsored group wedding of the year took place at the Nangang Software Park on April 10. Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin served as the presiding witness for 49 pairs of newlyweds, wishing them happiness in their marriage.
Seeking to turn the tide on Taiwan’s declining birth rate, Hau announced that the city government is working on incentive programs to encourage more couples to have kids. Possible approaches include offering subsidies and packages with day care options for married couple’s firstborn.
He expects to announce concrete details of the plan within the next ten months.
According to Hau, the annual birth rate of Taipei City remained at 0.975 percent, which means there are less than one newborn for each family – an extremely low number. The mayor beseeched newlyweds to help their country by having more kids, hoping at least three babies per family.
The mayor has instructed the Department of Civil Affairs to research plans on boosting the childbirth rate. The agency is currently evaluating the total cost of such subsidy programs. In addition, the Department of Education and the Department of Social Welfare are also looking into strengthening policies on childcare and nurseries, hoping to create a friendlier and more accessible environment for families with young kids.

The City will hold three more group weddings this year. Citizens who reside in Taipei City, or those studying/working in Taipei City are eligible to sign up for these events.
Fore more information about the city-sponsored group weddings, please visit the event’s official website (Chinese) at http://www.casub.taipei.gov.tw/umerry/.