The Fisheries Agency partnered with a local harbor association to create new shower and rest facilities for foreign fishers. These facilities also include a prayer room and have been made officially available starting Wednesday.
Pingtung fishers union representative Santosa says foreign fishers used to face challenges with showering due to lack of access. They also say they long for prayer rooms because they are working abroad for long periods of time.
Tung Kang fishers association Director Cheng Yu-chen (鄭鈺宸) says a 2022 survey shows more than half of the local fishing vessels rely on foreign fishers. Cheng adds foreign fishers are mostly from Indonesia, Philippines, and Vietnam, and they are indispensable members of Taiwan's fishing industry.
Agency official Liu Fu-sheng (劉福昇) says he hopes to highlight all the contributions foreign fishers bring to Taiwan through this project.
The project took three months to complete and cost over NT$3 million (US$100,000). Some fishers say these new facilities make Taiwan feel more like home.