Taipei City Government

On January 27, Mayor Ko Wen-je paid a visit to University of Tokyo’s Institute of Gerontology (IOG). He sought to learn about how the institute manages the senior care project in Kashiwa City through the visit.
Kashiwa Project, with core focus on community care for the elderly, seeks to establish household care and medical service system. Through household visits conducted by interdisciplinary healthcare teams, the need for seniors to visit the hospital will be significantly reduced, hence cutting down the cost of care and medical insurance.
According to Ko, Taiwan will be confronted with similar population ageing problem within ten years. Japan’s approach to addressing rapid ageing will serve as a valuable source of reference for the island.
Ko pointed out that Japan’s senior community design differs slightly from Taipei’s public housing, which reserves a proportion of apartment units for disadvantaged occupants. He added that senior care should be divided into ones for those capable of taking care of themselves and others targeting individuals with mobility difficulties.
In response to media questions about whether he has fulfilled his promise to promote senior community care, the mayor reckoned that a host of plans will be implemented in the near future. These include the integration of Google Map with information on the city’s social welfare resources and the facility improvement of 50 activity venues for the elderly.