Taipei – The Taipei City Government Wednesday set up a suicide prevention centre, in an effort to reduce the local suicide rate, seen as the second highest in Asia after Japan.

Mayor Hau Lung-bin unveiled the opening of the centre, staffed by eight specialists and a number of volunteer workers, the city government said in a statement.

The centre, which has a hotline, will work with various departments to coordinate efforts in consultation, emergency assistance, employment, schooling and care for the needy in a bid to discourage people from trying to kill themselves out of frustration, the city government said.

Social workers in Taipei said the establishment of the centre was necessary, given the rising unemployment rate and the ensuing risk of suicide among people who have lost their jobs.

The local jobless rate rose for the 10th month in a row to a record 5.75 per cent in February, with more than 500,000 people unemployed and over 1.6 million families affected.

Suicide is one of the top 10 causes of death in Taiwan, with the number of suicide cases standing at some 4,000 per year, government statistics show.(dpa)