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INTERVIEW: Taiwan second home for Burkina envoy

Burkina Faso's ambassador to Taiwan Jacques Sawadogo is pictured during an interview at his office in Taipei on Friday. PHOTO: LOA IOK-SIN, TAIPEI TIMES

Describing his youngest son as the "best souvenir" from his time in Taiwan, mathematician, engineer and Burkina Faso's ambassador to Taiwan Jacques Sawadogo said that Taiwan has become a second home to him and his family.

With his trademark big smile and hearty laugh, Sawadogo talked about his 12-year-old son, who was born in Taipei, with pride in his eyes.

"When we watch television, my son is our best translator. He can even speak Taiwanese," the ambassador said.

The problem with his "half-Taiwanese" son, he joked, is that the family has to pack a suitcase-full of Taiwanese food whenever they go on their annual month-long vacation.

Sawadogo is the first and so far only ambassador to Taiwan from Burkina Faso since the two countries established official ties in July 1994.

A respected mathematician and engineer in his home country, Sawadogo's seniority in local ambassadorial circles has made him the dean of the diplomatic corps in Taiwan.

Burkina Faso, formerly called the Republic of Upper Volta, is a land-locked west African country of 13 million people.

None of Burkina Faso's six neighbors recognizes Taiwan. It is one of the remaining four African countries that still recognize Taiwan after Malawi switched diplomatic ties to Beijing in late December.

Sawadogo came to Taiwan in 1994 as head of Burkina's Ministry of Economic Planning, tasked by President Blaise Compaore with opening the embassy.

"I came to Taiwan two days after the two countries established relations 13 years ago. It was a great honor for me to come back here as ambassador for my government," he said.

One of the many good things about Taiwan, the ambassador said, is the kindness and warmth of the Taiwanese people.

He recounted an incident that occurred just after they first arrived, when a Taiwanese man brought Sawadogo's wife all the way back to the embassy's office after she got lost in Taipei while out shopping.

"My wife recognized the office building when they got close. She told him that she knew how to get back, but he insisted on taking her all way to the office. The kindness that man showed was a wonderful way for us to start our life in Taiwan," Sawadogo said.

In addition to the hospitality of the people, the quality of Taiwan's healthcare system, education, use of advanced technology and democracy are truly praiseworthy, he said, adding that the UN was being unfair in alienating Taiwan from the international body.

The people of Burkina are very grateful for the assistance that Taiwan has rendered over the past decade and a half, and Ougadougou is deeply committed in its support for Taiwan's bid to enter various international organizations such as the UN and the WHO, he said.

The ambassador touted last September's Taiwan-Africa Summit in Taipei as an effective tool to foster relationships between Taiwan and its African allies as well as polish Taiwan's image on the continent.

Taiwan can also boost its clout and generate more support in Africa by expanding its humanitarian work in the region, Sawadogo said, recalling a moving experience a few years ago when he met two female Taiwanese volunteers in rural Burkina who spoke the village dialect perfectly.

"Non-governmental organizations are very important in Taiwan's foreign relations, because the help goes directly to the people," he said.

Once people develop sympathy for Taiwan's plight, "they will push their governments" to recognize Taiwan, Sawadogo said.

Another way for Taiwan to rally more African support is by wooing businessmen and investing in the continent.

The ambassador said his country, which is Africa's second-biggest cotton producer and the world's fourth-largest, has an annual production of 800,000 tonnes of cotton.

Burkina Faso grants Taiwanese investors a variety of business incentives, including tax breaks, he said.
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