Taiwan's progress towards becoming an ocean country

Abstract

The Ocean Affairs Council (OAC) is a central administrative agency under the Executive Yuan (cabinet) that was established by the government on April 28, 2018, in southern Taiwan. Taiwan has accomplished several important breakthroughs in ocean affairs and governance aiming to integrate and coordinate all ocean-related affairs through the establishment of the OAC. The OAC includes three agencies: the Coast Guard Administration (CGA), the Ocean Conservation Administration (OCA) and the National Academy of Marine Research (NAMR). Establishing the OAC allows Taiwan's government to focus more attention on ocean affairs, ocean governance and ocean countries. In addition, Taiwan now has its own specific marine agency and the capacity to establish future marine policy, maritime security, coastal management, marine resource conservation and sustainable development, marine science and technology research, and marine cultural and educational policy. Academics and legislators have worked with the Legislative Yuan for more than 20 years before the four ocean affairs-related organization acts were passed in 2015. However, the Legislative Yuan's proposal was suspended in 2016, and its unveiling ceremony was not held until April 2018. This paper seeks to introduce the missions of the OAC, CGA, OCA, and NAMR to provide a full overview of the new accomplishments and legal measures in the implementation of a national marine policy in Taiwan. Moreover, experiences will be shared with readers to provide an understanding of the reasons behind establishing Taiwan as an ocean country, and Taiwan's organizational blueprint will be outlined. Finally, we provide a reference for those who want to establish an ocean management agency.