Taiwan’s parliament authorised payment of over 15 billion dollars for COVID-19 related economic and social assistance funds on Monday for people and companies affected by the current outbreak.
Over 8,500 persons have been infected and 124 have died in Taiwan as a result of the pandemic.
The revisions extended the tenure of the special act until June 2022 and hiked the ceiling for assistance by 420 billion to 840 billion New Taiwan dollars (15.2 billion-30.4 billion U.S. dollars).
Officials said the number of people who would benefit would exceed the 5.24 million who received cash payments of over 139 billion New Taiwan dollars last year.
The Cabinet was expected to finalise the new special budget June 3, allowing cash payments to be sent into bank accounts by Friday. (dpa/NAN)
