TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) attended a ceremony Sunday afternoon in Tainan to commemorate disaster relief and reconstruction efforts following Typhoon Danas, which struck on July 6, per a press release.

Lai thanked all colleagues and partners involved in relief and rebuilding efforts, saying their work helped affected residents restore their homes and livelihoods. The collective response, he said, reflected the kindness, courage, and selflessness of the Taiwanese.

He also used the occasion to address Taiwan’s upcoming challenges, urging citizens to look beyond party affiliation. Lai said he hoped the ruling and opposition parties could unite to build a safer and more resilient future for the nation.

In his remarks, Lai expressed gratitude for returning to Tainan for the ceremony. He thanked Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲) and the city government for organizing the event.

Lai said he was shocked by images of the devastation left by the typhoon but also moved by accounts from Huang and Minister of Public Construction Chen Chin-te (陳金德) describing how people rushed to assist with relief efforts. Through joint efforts, he said, the pain caused by the disaster would eventually fade, and recovery would prevail.

Lai noted that Typhoon Danas was the first typhoon in 120 years to make landfall in Budai, Chiayi, causing severe damage across the Yunlin-Chiayi-Tainan region. Tens of thousands of homes lost their roofs, and many residents saw their homes devastated overnight. He said the tireless efforts of people from all walks of life in relief and reconstruction were deeply moving and admirable.

Shortly after the disaster, the Cabinet established a command center to coordinate resources from central and local governments as well as the public and private sectors to support relief and rebuilding efforts.

Lai said the military was deployed during the post-disaster period to assist local governments with cleanup and reconstruction and to help restore schools and other public facilities. He added that the private sector also demonstrated strong capacity, with many businesses and charitable organizations commissioning engineers to help repair damaged homes. Donations of funds and supplies from companies and citizens further supported recovery efforts.

He said those recognized at the ceremony included public sector units that provided cross-county assistance to Tainan, engineering teams that offered professional services free of charge, social organizations that supported farmers and fishers, Taipower and Taiwan Water staff who restored power and water services, and businesses and individuals who donated supplies and disaster relief funds.

Lai said in August the Cabinet approved a special NT$60 billion (US$1.9 billion) budget for post-Typhoon Danas recovery and reconstruction, as well as for damage caused by torrential rains on July 28. He thanked lawmakers for supporting funding to help residents rebuild in areas including housing, agriculture, electricity, communications, water conservancy, transportation, road repair, sanitation, environmental protection, and industrial support.

He said cooperation between central and local governments has led to the approval of 50,213 home reconstruction subsidies, along with 266 renovation projects for disadvantaged households. The government will accelerate implementation of the remaining 53 reconstruction subprojects, he added.

Looking ahead, Lai said disaster prevention, relief, and recovery are shared responsibilities as Taiwan faces increasingly extreme weather. With fewer than 20 days remaining in the fiscal year, he noted that the legislature has yet to review next year’s central government budget, which could affect policy implementation.

Lai also warned that two amendments to the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures have significantly weakened central government finances. If budgets are compiled under the revised law, he said, the central government would need to borrow more than NT$500 billion next year and continue borrowing in subsequent years.

If the central government lacks sufficient resources and loses its capacity to respond to disasters, Lai said, local governments would be left to shoulder the burden alone, reducing the efficiency of relief efforts and hindering post-disaster recovery.

Emphasizing that the nation’s challenges affect all parties, Lai called for unity between the ruling and opposition parties to ensure stable governance, saying such cooperation would strengthen Taiwan’s resilience and help secure a safer future.