The decline of local industries in a remote township is often accompanied by population outflow. Without effective revitalization, these villages are ultimately trapped in a vicious cycle of extinction. In 2013, Mashagou Fishing Port in Jiangjun District, Tainan City, was asked to cease operations by the government, forcing it to learn how to generate tourism revenue at a critical juncture. Transforming into a sustainable, in-depth tourist attraction is an ongoing process of the government's efforts to help declining agricultural and fishing villages create a future vision.

This hero behind the stage is Mr. Chen Qi-zong, the Executive Director of Mashagou Community Development Association in Jiangjun District, Tainan City. He is the resident who was born in the 90s. He said, "My roots are in here, and I don't want my hometown just be "gone" by that; so, I strive for the position and try to integrate the communities for developing the community tourism.

Compensated for Tourism Capacity and Actively Connected with Other Regions
He had the idea when he was 24 years old and just working at a travel agency in Yongkang District, Tainan City. At that time, the government collaborated with the Southwest Coast National Scenic Area Headquarters of Tourism Administration, Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC), to paint 36 of 3D murals throughout the village and calling on volunteers to join a guide training program for creating eye-catching tourism element for Mashagou Community. He signed up immediately.

The 3D Painted Village was established 3 years later. Its style mainly depicts the ocean and fishing village are full of childhood fun and has indeed sparked a lot of discussion. "However, some issues came up after a period of time, the mean point was there was no reaching attractions to keep the tourists and the crowd, the business opportunity disappears immediately." The tourism capacity was not enough and have to lever the external nature and manpower resources to keep attracting tourists.

Therefore, in 2018, Mr. Chen Qi-zong established Tainan City Mashagou Tourism and Leisure Association. It integrated Bei-men District in the North, Qi-qu District in the south, and the oldest Salt Field in Taiwan, the only Salt Industry Museum which full of history documents, into a tourism trip which has rural story and Instagram spots for photography.

Having seen the initial success, Mr. Chen actively connected with external partners, "modularizing" the cooperative communities willing to share business opportunities and local characteristics of Mashagou into diverse package tours. For example, the "Salt Oyster Life" tour along Provincial Highway 61 on the West Coast: starting with a guided tour of a 3D Painted Village in the morning, experiencing oyster digging and strings, enjoying a Sea View Gout-Inducing Meal, and then heading to Qi-gu District for a ride on the Salt Mountain Miniature Train and a Museum Guided Tour.

As of 2024, the Association received over 1,000 guided visitors monthly, with over 2,000 coming specifically for the grilled oyster feast.

Explore the Operational Aspect with the MEPP Partners
During that time, Mr. Chen Qi-zong observed that the tourism strategy that combines nearby communities is stable and profitable, and it is the right time to manage his hometown. Therefore, he took the Executive Director position of the Community Development Association in 2023, and applied the "Multi-Employment Promotion Program (MEPP) of the Ministry of Labor," obtaining the 1-year Economic Type Program and 7 subsidized project staff. He plans to establish a real in-depth tour in the same way.

He plans the Association's operational model around 5 aspects: "Food, Accommodation, Sightseeing, Shopping, and Transportation," each connected to the community's partners separately. As of now, there are 5, 2, 1, 6, and 1 business partners in the small league. He confessed that the MEPP partners are not from the tourism industry, but in-depth tourism requires professional guiding skills and long-term training; therefore, the senior partners are mainly responsible for catering and souvenir processing.

For example, the Fire Shrimp (Whiskered Velvet Shrimp) Egg Rolls and Mullet Roe Nougat are snacks that they developed together. "The Fire Shrimp was found in the Green Island, which was named Burning Island (Samasana)." The meat of Fire Shrimp is very soft with strong shrimp flavor; it can only live in clear water and is hard to cultivate by man." It is small in quantity, and the key point that attracts the markets.

Deeply Cultivating Independent Travelers and Offering Flexible, Customized Trips
However, the reality is that the tourism capacity is limited and Mr. Chen Qi-zong tends not to receive group travelers and enlarges scales. He would like to target individual backpackers who want to slow down and experience local scenes. So far, this main customer level contributes over 60% of the annual rate. "The first year's annual revenue is NT$ 1,200,000, which reaches the goal; This year is the third one, and we expect to reach the goal of NT$ 3,000,000." The results are reliant on the efforts and strategies of the MEPP partners.

He revealed that the MEPP team formed by the residents holds the local networks; so, the team reaches wider and deeper among the locals. For example, the "Mountain and Sea Romance" trip that is launching in the autumn of 2025 will travel along Provincial Highway 84, first to Beimen District and Xuejia District, then southeast to Madou District and Guantian District, offering opportunities to eat milkfish, pick pomelos, admire hollyhocks, and harvest water chestnuts along the way. There is the oldest mango tree in Taiwan in Guantian, and many tourists would like to see it once they hear about it.

It is the longest trip that the Association has designed; the tourist can choose the trip in one to three days, which is flexibly customized. Mr. Chen Qi-zong expects that the Association could create more profits when fulfilling the depth and slow type of tourists. It continues to provide the Solitary Elderly 80 meals per month, and could provide more.

Finally, he shares his yearly tourist working experiences that there are many fishing and agriculture villages with 2,000 residents, like Mashagou village, trying to transform into tourist attractions. It often proves futile if the hard works only rely on the leaders and residents to transform the village, "They should position themselves as a large platform, broaden their horizons, share resources, and mutually benefit from profits. This is the most efficient, effective, and productive business approach."

The Official Facebook Webpage of Tainan City Mashagou Community Development Association

▲The MEPP team members formed by residents are mostly not from a tourism background, but hold local networks. Therefore, the senior partners are mostly responsible for catering and souvenir processing.

▲The village is full of ocean-and fishing-themed 3D murals and has indeed caught people's attention. However, there was not enough tourism capacity to keep tourists staying, which led Mr. Chen to leverage the natural and human resources outside.

▲The Association connects the regions and communities nearby, and plans the trip with local characteristics. It received over 1,000 visitors every month, and those who came for the grilled oyster feast.

▲The Executive Director of Tainan City Mashagou Community Development Association, Mr. Chen Qi-zong: we need to create more local and international in-depth tourism so that we can welcome the explosive influx of tourists.

Case story: Multi-Employment Promotion Program
Interviewee: Tainan City Mashagou Community Development Association

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Please attribute this article to“Workforce Development Agency, Ministry of Labor.”