Summary of Madou District

1. Natural environment:

This district is located in the heartland of Tainan City at the south of Zengwun River. Guantian District and Jiali District lies to the east and west respectively. To the south of Madou would be Shanhua, Anding, and Sigang districts, while Siaying District and Syuejia District border the north. The entire district covers a total area of 53.9744 square kilometers and is divided into 29 villages and 392 neighborhoods. Madou District is very accessible, with Chungshan Freeway with the Madou interchange passing through western side of the district and a 30-meter wide external circuit expressway to the north that is connected to Provincial Highway as well as the north-south TRA railway line.

2. Population and industry:

Madou District is flat land with gentle topography and productive lands located in the heartland of Tainan City. The district has a population of 45,037 individuals (data from April 2015). Most residents in Madou District are good rustic folk whose ancestries hail from Zhangzhou and Quanzhou regions in Fujian Province. The region is largely engaged in traditional farming, aquaculture, and animal rearing. About 61% of the population is engaged in farming, aquaculture, and animal rearing. Leading crops include rice, sweet potatoes, and sugarcane. Top produce include Madou pomelos, white pomelos, avocados, and watermelon seeds. Most animal farmers tend to chickens, ducks, and pigs. A lot of them also keep aquaculture ponds for rearing freshwater fish. Madou is most famous for its Madou pomelos and watermelon seed processing facilities, both of which have earned considerable amount of wealth for the District.

There are 450 registered industries and companies in Madou District. Most of these businesses are involved in textiles, steel, plastics, and food processing, adopting a ribbon development model along the roads. Industries and businesses occupy a total of 12.1 hectares of in the District, and include malls, convenience stores, eateries, household appliances, jewelry, watches, Chinese and Western medicine, and the entertainment industry. In order to support rural industrial development, a Madou Industrial Park covering 216 hectares have been planned. Development is still an ongoing process, with a total of 64.52 hectares developed to date. Since the region is highly accessible from the highway located in the district, industrial development is expected benefit local prosperity significantly.

3. Traffic conditions:

Madou District lies in the center of Tainan City and is therefore extremely accessible. National Highway No. 1 passes through the west side of the District and includes a Madou interchange for northbound and southbound travelers. The east-west Expressway No. 84 from Beimen to Yujing passing through the northeastern part of this District has just been recently opened to traffic as well. Madou's traffic network to other areas also includes a 30-meter wide circuit-way connected to Provincial Highway 1 at the east. This road passes through north-south TRA railway line, and ends at the National Highway to the west.

City Expressway 171 starts from Guantian, passes through Madou and arrives at Syuejia. City Expressway 173 goes from Madou through Sigang to Cigu. City Expressway 176 starts from Longtian through Madou to Jiali. For district roads, South 24 starts from Dashanjiao and ends at Jiangjyun. South 49 expressway starts from Haipu and ends at Xiecuoliao. South 57 goes from Madou to Datunliao. Provincial 19A and Mashan Bridge has been widened to become a 4-lane road connected to Shanhua and Shinshih Technology Park, serving as a major commuting channel linking the regions north and south of Zengwun River.

4. Flowers in March and Pomelos in August

Madou is Taiwan's leading producer of Wendan Pomelos, which gives rise to its other name of Pomelo City. When the spring breezes arrive in Spring, the pomelo trees will be in full blossom, laden with pristine white pomelo flowers giving off a refreshing fragrance that permeates through the entire town. A series of promotional events and activities would be organized to welcome visitors of all ages to appreciate these pomelo blossoms and experience the alluring fragrance as people look forward to the bountiful harvest of pomelos during mid-autumn. The perfect time to harvest wendan pomelos would be around the 15th solar term of Bailu (white dew, approximately 7th-23rd of September). In Madou, almost every family would have several pomelo trees. Pomelo farmers would construct a small warehouse for storing the pomelos, which they would sell directly to the customers. Consumers would only need to check for the warehouse labels to verify that the pomelos have been grown in Madou instead of second-rate replacements from other districts. Before mid-autumn, many buyers will flock to Madou District. Traffic jams would even spread 2 kilometers long during public holidays.

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