Taipei, Oct. 1 (CNA) The Changhua Coastal Industrial Park has been listed as the ninth free economic pilot zone in Taiwan, with lawmakers on Wednesday calling for the speedy passage of a bill to govern the project.

The Changhua economic pilot zone covers key seaports, an airport and an agricultural biotech park.

On Tuesday, the Ministry of Economic Affairs approved an application by the Changhua County government to list the industrial park as a free economic pilot zone, county chief Cho Po-yuan said.

The project has several advantages and is supported by local residents and businesses alike, he said, calling for swift passage of the economic pilot zone bill in the Legislature.

Cho noted that central Taiwan is a hub for the manufacture of precision machinery and for small- and medium-sized enterprises and that Google's biggest data center in Asia is located in his county.

The county magistrate's call for expedited passage of the bill was echoed by ruling Kuomintang (KMT) lawmakers, who urged opposition legislators to cooperate on the issue.

At a press conference, KMT caucus whip Fai Hrong-tai called on the opposition Democratic Progressive Party to stop boycotting the bill and allow it to clear the Legislative floor as soon as possible so that it can help create jobs for local people.

With the establishment of a free economic pilot zone, Changhua County will attract more established businesses such as Google and will help promote Taiwan in the rest of the world, KMT lawmaker Lin Tsang-min said at the press conference.

Taiwan has eight other free economic pilot zones, namely the seaports of Taipei, Kaohsiung, Keelung, Taichung, Su'ao and Anping; Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, the nation's main international gateway; and Pingtung Agricultural Biotechnology Park. 

(By Tai Ya-chen, Hsiao Po-yang and Scully Hsiao)
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