Four marinas have to build to promote tourism, admits President Ma. He told that fishing ports can not only serve as hubs for commercial fishing but also as bases for recreational yachting. He was speaking at a promotional award ceremony honoring the nation’s top 10 “most interesting” fishing ports. Ma also said that the government would lift obsolete restrictions on coastal areas to allow tourism that “does not harm the environment or ecology.
It is expressed that during the Martial Law era, Taiwan heavily restricted coastal development, which Ma said resulted in many people viewing the sea with a mixture of fear and awe. But times have changed, he said, adding that fishing ports and their surroundings could be developed for sightseeing and other recreational purposes.
Ma expressed that the marinas will be able to accommodate 190 recreational yachts. By then, Taiwan will not just be Asia’s No. 1 and the world’s No. 5 yacht maker, but also be a country open to yachting. Despite the global economic downturn, Ma said Taiwan had seen a nearly 13 percent increase in the number of inbound visitors this year as of the end of last month, with more than 3.94 million visits.
