Taiwan is to donate US$1 million to Indonesia to support relief efforts following a devastating earthquake that struck the island of Sulawesi late last month, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.
The ministry will hand the US$1 million in relief funds to the Indonesian government to be used to aid reconstruction in the area affected by the quake.
The decision to make the donation was based on humanitarian needs and the close friendship between Taiwan and Indonesia, the ministry said.
Photo: AP
The Ministry of Health and Welfare has also opened two special bank accounts to take donations from people who want to help Sulawesi residents recover from the earthquake, the foreign ministry said.
The bank accounts will be open for donations until Nov. 3, with the health ministry handing the funds over to the foreign ministry, which will pass them on to the Indonesian government for reconstruction use.
In a separate donation effort, the Overseas Community Affairs Council said that Taiwanese businesspeople based in Indonesia have started a donation campaign that has collected more than US$80,000 to help earthquake victims.
The magnitude 7.5 earthquake that rocked the city of Palu in central Sulawesi and the 6m-high tsunami that followed left at least 1,558 dead, more than 150 missing and 65,733 buildings damaged as of yesterday morning, the foreign ministry said, citing Indonesian government figures.
The foreign ministry said it was not aware of any Taiwanese being killed or injured in the quake.
Taiwan’s representative office in Indonesia has stayed in close contact with the Indonesian government to get a clear picture of the damage caused by the earthquake, and has pledged to respond quickly if the Indonesian government makes any request for assistance, the foreign ministry said.
On Tuesday, the New Taipei Fire Department pledged to send relief supplies and a rescue team to assist Indonesia.
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