The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday signed an agreement with the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) to establish a joint trust fund, with Taiwan planning to donate US$5 million over five years.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) and CABEI President Dante Mossi signed the agreement while meeting over videoconference.
Minister of Finance Su Jain-rong (蘇建榮), Central Bank Deputy Governor Chen Nan-kuang (陳南光), and ambassadors of Belize, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, as well as CABEI’s Taiwan office members, also attended the virtual event, the ministry said in a news release.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs via CNA
Headquartered in Tegucigalpa, CABEI on July 6 opened its first overseas office in Taiwan, with Chen and Su serving as the nation’s representatives on its board of directors, it said.
Starting this year until 2025, the ministry would donate US$1 million to the fund each year to help the four diplomatic allies implement CABEI’s technical cooperation and capacity building projects, it said.
The government would select Taiwanese companies or consultants to join the projects to help the countries improve their economic and social developments, and boost Taiwanese industry’s profile in the region, it added.
The Central American countries’ development needs have changed, Chen was quoted as saying in the statement, adding that he hopes CABEI properly utilizes the funds.
Taiwan and CABEI would next year mark 30 years of partnership, Wu said.
In the post-COVID-19-pandemic era, Taiwan would continue working with CABEI, the nation’s diplomatic allies and other friendly countries to promote the region’s sustainable and inclusive developments, he said.
Thanking Taiwan for its contributions to CABEI over the years, Mossi said the agreement for the fund marks a milestone of bilateral partnership.
Honduran Minister of Finance Luis Mata said he appreciated Taiwan offering technical and financial aid to the country, adding that Taiwan-Honduras ties are firm and steady.
In other news, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday said that China’s Global Times was spreading disinformation to sabotage Taiwan-Honduras relations.
The newspaper said that numerous social media accounts criticizing Honduras’ left-wing candidate in the Nov. 28 presidential election might be related to the Democratic Progressive Party.
The Global Times has been identified by the US government as a “foreign mission,” the ministry said, adding that it is an organ of the Chinese government and does not qualify as media.
Taiwan would respect the outcome of the Honduran presidential election, it added.
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