Haiti and Taiwan signed joint cooperation agreements worth US$55 million during Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide's recent visit to Taipei, Minister of Foreign Affairs Eugene Chien (簡又新) confirmed yesterday.
Officials announced on Monday in Port-Au-Prince that Haiti's president sealed the agreements with President Chen Shui-bian (
The report said both heads of state sealed another agreement whose details were not made public.
The Taiwanese government had been silent on agreements until the revelation of the episode in a news agency report filed from Haiti on Monday.
"It is not a lump-sum payment. The period of payment lasts for five years," Chien said.
The financial aid package would be issued on an annual basis for the next five years, contingent upon the evaluation of the implementation of various projects, Chien said.
Both sides have agreed to set up a joint committee, composed of officials from both countries, to monitor the implementation of these programs, Chien said.
"It's not because of the visit of Haiti's president to Taiwan that we decided to give the country aid," Chien said, adding that Taipei's ambassador to Haiti has been negotiating with the country over details of the agreements for some time.
The agreement stressed that Taiwanese firms would be able to enjoy priority consideration when bidding on certain projects, Chien said.
Haitian ambassador to Taiwan, Lafontaine Saint-Louis, was not available yesterday to comment on the recently sealed agreements.
The cooperation projects -- which include road construction, the establishment of medical schools, as well as literacy projects -- are aimed at improving infrastructure in Haiti, Chien said.
Chien said the agreement reflected Taiwan's goodwill and highlighted its willingness to help improve the situation in impoverished countries as they move up the development ladder.
According to the CIA World Factbook, Haiti's literacy rate in 1995 was about 45 percent, while per capita GDP in 2000 was around US$1,800.
President Aristide lead a 30-member delegation to Taipei on July 16 for a five-day state visit.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
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