Magistrate Chung Speaks on 'Miaoli Awakening' at Forum, Sharing County's Recent Transformation

On August 7, Commonwealth Magazine hosted the '2026 Commonwealth Cities Summit Forum,' inviting Miaoli County Magistrate Chung Tung-chin to deliver a keynote speech titled 'Human-Centric Livability: Building Age-Inclusive Future Scenarios.' Magistrate Chung shared Miaoli County’s recent transformations and future vision, emphasizing that Miaoli is a city currently being developed, awakening, and rising. He stressed the need for comprehensive policies that prioritize every individual’s quality of life, ensuring all residents feel happiness and security. He also extended an invitation to major enterprises to invest in Miaoli, highlighting its stable water and electricity supply, affordable land, and high cost-performance ratio.

The forum took place at the Public Enterprise Center of Taipei Municipal University, where Magistrate Chung presented under the theme 'Miaoli Awakening,' discussing transformations in social welfare, healthcare, transportation, energy, culture, and tourism. He emphasized that a city’s awakening begins when people regain belief in the future—when they are willing to move to Miaoli, raise families here, and participate in shaping its future.

During his lecture, Magistrate Chung noted that beyond employment and housing, what truly encourages people to stay is a robust support system for their parents and children. He expressed concern over the phenomenon of 'one elderly family member causing the entire family to flee,' particularly regarding dementia care, which requires coordinated responsibility from long-term care, health, and social services. To address this, the county has widely established community care hubs offering health promotion activities and communal dining to delay cognitive decline. In addition to existing dementia-friendly homes, a new facility is planned adjacent to the Zhunan Health Station, pending approval and support from the Ministry of Health and Welfare. This initiative aims to enable county and township governments to assist young families in caring for their aging parents. Furthermore, the county is expanding public childcare services and classroom capacity to meet educational demands, continuously reviewing policies to reduce the caregiving burden on younger generations so they can focus on building their careers.

Magistrate Chung reflected deeply on the scarcity of medical and educational resources in Miaoli since taking office. He expressed gratitude for collaborative efforts in recent years, noting that alongside Dachien General Hospital’s Zhunan branch, the Baishatun Mazu Hospital has opened, and the Ministry-operated Miaoli Hospital is undergoing expansion. Once completed, these three projects will significantly enhance Miaoli’s medical resources, providing residents with greater peace of mind and excellent emergency and critical care protection.

Regarding long-term care needs, Magistrate Chung explained that two public LTC institutions already exist, with the Miaoli County Long-Term Care Home currently under construction in Tongluo. In partnership with Tzu Chi, an integrated medical-care retirement center is being developed, aiming to rehabilitate residents so they can return home. To bridge urban-rural disparities, the county team is leveraging health station renovations to integrate day care centers, and even include child care centers and parent-child halls, enabling rural children to enjoy joyful experiences and seniors to receive proper care. Vaccinations also become more accessible, eliminating the need for long commutes. The integrated health-social plans in Yuanli and Zaoqiao have been confirmed, while older health stations still require resource support from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, combined with county matching funds, to ensure comprehensive care for rural elders and children.

Magistrate Chung emphasized, 'Good infrastructure gives time back to families.' To alleviate traffic congestion, the county has advanced improvements to the National Highway No. 1 Toufen Interchange and proposed adding a new Zaoqiao Interchange. He hopes Toufen will gain a second interchange, effectively unblocking Miaoli’s transportation arteries. During the forum, he clarified that he moved to Toufen during his tenure as council speaker and continues to reside there, fully understanding that most parts of Miaoli do not experience traffic jams. Thus, the county team actively advocates for construction projects at key transportation nodes to resolve congestion issues.

Additionally, Magistrate Chung highlighted the importance of energy, noting that nearly all public buildings and schools feature various green energy installations. In recent years, Miaoli County has actively developed a hydrogen industry demonstration zone, aiming to attract tech firms and international giants with clean energy. The county is also seeking collaboration with the Forestry Bureau to convert Miaoli’s bamboo into bamboo charcoal and carbon credits for corporate purchase, thereby creating economic value and contributing to environmental sustainability.

As a major Hakka cultural county, Magistrate Chung emphasized the continued importance of preserving the Hakka language. Beyond safeguarding Hakka culture and language, the county is committed to inclusively supporting Hokkien culture, religious traditions like the Mazu pilgrimage, and new immigrant communities, fostering respect and continuity for diverse cultural development.

Magistrate Chung stressed that compared to seven years ago, when fiscal constraints limited infrastructure and social welfare, Miaoli now benefits from outstanding enterprises and industries moving in. Where medical services were once insufficient, a comprehensive and robust medical-care-protection network now exists. He believes Miaoli will become a proudly multicultural region, continuing positive development, bringing safety to families, and evolving into a place not just to return to as a hometown, but somewhere anyone would willingly move to, stay, and live together.