A documentary on Taiwan's foreign aid programs was released by the Government Information Office (GIO) yesterday, winning applause from Taipei-based ambassadors who thought the film would help shake off misperceptions about Taiwan's foreign aid operations.
"It's a very important documentary in the sense that it gives the people of Taiwan a sense of what the government authorities are doing in other countries, especially when you face a situation ... [when] people are not aware of how the taxpayers' money is going to some projects," said Ovidio Pequeno, Ambassador of Sao Tome and Principe.
"Some believed the money just went to help some corrupt people, or just to, as some are using the word, `throw money into the rat's hole.' It's not something like that. The money is going to our countries and other developing countries," Pequeno said.
The five volume documentary entitled Bringing Friendship and Hope -- Taiwan's International Cooperation Program, was released in four languages, Mandarin, English, French and Spanish. A budget of NT$4 million was allocated to the two-year production, which was shot in 18 countries and produced by a local TV production company, GIO officials said.
The film documents Taiwan's foreign aid operations in Africa, Asia and Central and South America. It features interviews with local people from the allied nations and members of Taiwan's technical missions and medical teams working in various foreign lands.
Staffers of the International Cooperation and Development Fund (ICDF), the principal body overseeing Taiwan's foreign assistance under the supervision of the foreign ministry, are among the interviewees given prominence in the documentary, as they explain the rationale behind Taiwan's foreign aid operations.
According to the documentary, Taiwan received a total of US$1.5 billion in foreign aid from the US during the 1960s.
Taiwan first began sending agricultural missions to Asia in 1959, with Vietnam the first destination. In 1961, Taiwan sent technical missions to Africa to help improve fruit and vegetable production.
In recent years, Taiwan's international programs have expanded to include cooperation in small and medium-sized enterprises, regional projects and educational training.
Several ambassadors gave a thumbs up to the documentary.
"I was very impressed by the content of the film because I can see all the work that the Republic of China is doing with regard to international cooperation," said Francisco Ricardo Santana Berrios, ambassador of El Salvador.
"Taiwan has done a lot to help other countries. It's great that they can put something like that into the tape to allow everybody to understand [that]," Pequeno said.
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