Taiwan to Allocate $7.5 Billion for Procurement of Domestic Drones

Taiwan’s parliament has passed a bill to develop the unmanned systems industry, prioritizing the procurement of domestically produced drones for defense needs.

Central News Agency reported this.

The bill sets a maximum procurement budget of 240 billion New Taiwan dollars ($7.5 billion).

The law requires the Ministry of National Defense to prioritize purchasing domestic unmanned systems and provides an annual allocation of 40 billion New Taiwan dollars ($1.2 billion) over six years from the overall budget.

The parliamentary opposition rejected the government’s alternative proposal for a special budget of 210 billion New Taiwan dollars ($6.6 billion), opting instead for phased procurement through annual funding allocations.

The approved law covers aerial, maritime, and ground drones.

It also requires the Ministry of Economic Affairs to set criteria for domestic production, create at least three testing grounds, and establish a national committee to coordinate industry development.