The Executive Yuan yesterday touted the progress it had made under a multi-ministerial initiative aimed at developing Taiwan’s elderly-care technology sector, a market valued at NT$290 billion (US$9.93 billion), in response to the nation’s rapidly aging population.
The senior citizen technology industry action plan, launched 18 months ago, is a collaborative effort involving the Ministry of Digital Affairs, the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Education, and the National Science and Technology Council, officials told a news conference.
The initiative aims to ensure that the daily needs of Taiwan’s aging population can be met through innovative technological solutions, they said.
The ratio of working-age people to elderly citizens is expected to fall to 2.3:1 by 2035, meaning many elderly people would live alone or be cared for by other elders, they said.
Taiwan must make better use of technology to address the issue, yet too much of the nation’s tech sector is centered on manufacturing components, rather than the development of integrated, user-ready products tailored to elder care, they added.
In response, the Cabinet launched the program to invest in and coordinate the private sector’s efforts to develop specific technologies catering to the elderly population, they said.
To that end, non-governmental organizations, local governments, public and privately owned care providers and academic institutions were brought together to create integrated solutions, they added.
The project has achieved preliminary results in the form of 160 innovations related to health, safety and assisted living, in addition to educational initiatives aimed at helping elderly people adopt and use new technologies, they said.
These innovations include smart management systems that enable staff in long-term care facilities to track residents’ locations and receive real-time alerts for slip-and-fall incidents, sensors embedded in mattresses to prevent bedsores and automated information kiosks capable of processing indigenous languages, the officials said.
Educational efforts include classes to help elderly people use food delivery or taxi apps, operate 3D printers and virtual reality technology-based learning programs, and art therapy, they said.
The initiative has also facilitated the introduction of labor-saving technologies in hospitals, including automated diagnostic tools, administrative management algorithms and remote healthcare services, they added.
These tools are projected to reduce hospitals’ administrative workloads by up to 47 percent and ease care providers’ burdens by as much as 25 percent, they said.
Taiwan’s elderly-care technology companies have a combined value of NT$290 billion, but much of it is driven by exports, they said.
The nation’s “Silicon Valley” project approved by the Executive Yuan in January — which aims develop an artificial intelligence-focused industrial ecosystem in southern Taiwan — includes significant investments aimed at expanding the production capability of elderly care-related products, they said.
In addition, the government is assisting businesses of all kinds in adopting elder-friendly technologies to simulate and support aging-related consumption, they said.
Date:2025-7-12 Source:TAIPEI TIMES