The 14th Arts & Business Awards ceremony was held on Nov. 19 at Taipei's Songshan Cultural and Creative Park. The Ministry of Culture gave out 126 contribution awards and 14 special awards to corporate sponsors and individual donors whose patronage of the arts exceeded a total of NT$2 billion this year. Minister of Culture Cheng Li-chiun presented the awards and thanked the laureates for providing foundational support to the arts and literary community.
Minister Cheng remarked that the Arts & Business Awards was established to thank and commend all the companies, groups, and individuals who support Taiwan's cultural and artistic undertakings. Moreover, it drives the business community to invest in culture-related events and creates a free, diverse, and vibrant environment, she added.
Culture not only represents the essence of an era, it is also an important facet of a nation. As demonstrated by the laureates of this year's Arts & Business Awards, there are more and more diverse and creative methods of contributing to the cultural sphere, she added.
Additionally, to encourage enterprises to invest in more collaboration opportunities with the arts sector, the Ministry has reached an agreement with the Taiwan Stock Exchange Corporation (TWSE) to include a clause on "fostering cultural development" in its "Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Best Practice Principles for TWSE/GTSM-Listed Companies."
The Ministry holds the annual Arts & Business Awards in accordance with the "Regulation on Awards Granted by the Ministry of Culture to Sponsors Funding Cultural and Arts-related Enterprises" and works to encourage more companies, groups, and individuals to come together to create a better cultural and artistic environment, incorporate artistic ideals with corporate resources, and create new modes of cooperation.