Under the plan, proposed by the Ministry of the Interior, NT$1.7 billion will be allocated to the central government and NT$610 million in subsidies sent to local governments to carry out the measure, which is focused primarily on redesigning and renovating existing cemeteries.

Each township can apply for funding for one renovation project, beginning next January. Approved projects can be subsidized by up to NT$10 million each.

Taiwan's 319 townships have 2,000 public cemeteries covering 80 million square meters, but they are rarely planned or efficiently designed, and overhauling their haphazard set-ups are a top priority.

The government believes that by renovating some of the cemeteries and encouraging a higher rate of cremation in the future, some 80,000 square-meters of land will be freed that can be made available for alternative uses.