The Taiwanese Ministry of the Interior announced it has approved applications from construction firms to hire more than 9,000 migrant workers as part of the government's efforts to address labour shortages in the local economy, reports Focus Taiwan, citing the Ministry’s National Land Management Agency. The Ministry began receiving applications from construction firms based on a decision made by the Ministry of Labour in June to permit the employment of 15,000 migrant workers in the construction industry. In a statement, the agency said the Ministry has reviewed the applications it received from 1 August to employ migrant workers in the local construction industry and approved 570 applications, hiring 9,048 migrant workers in the first stage of the application process.