Taiwan President Lai Ching-te announced that next year’s budget plan will allocate NT$235.7 billion, providing each person with NT$10,000.
This decision was made possible thanks to a strong economic recovery: according to the authorities, GDP growth in the first half of the year reached an impressive 14.15%, the strongest indicator in the past five years.
The economic boom is driven by explosive demand for artificial intelligence technology, semiconductors and cloud computing. After receiving the budget revenue surplus forecast, the government decided to let every citizen share in the “artificial intelligence dividend”.
If the budget is passed by the Legislative Yuan before the end of the year, the money will reach residents before the Lunar New Year. In addition, the budget includes five other key priorities: supporting families with children, record defense spending (more than 3% of GDP), developing Smart Nation 2.0 plans, infrastructure modernization and financial assistance to regions.