Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) earlier this week signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Buddhist Tzu Chi Charity Foundation to enhance public-private sector cooperation in post-disaster relief and medical aid, MOFA announced today.
The MOU was signed by Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) and CEO of the Tzu Chi Foundation, Yen Po-wen (顏博文), on Tuesday at MOFA headquarters in Taipei, MOFA said in a press release.
The deal would see MOFA team up with the charity foundation so that diplomats can learn from Tzu Chi’s significant expertise in conducting cross-border post-disaster relief and medical aid.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
In this way, Taiwan's diplomats are to be given more access to and first-hand experience with international cooperation, the press release quoted Lin as saying.
According to MOFA, Lin said Taiwan frequently endures natural disasters such as earthquakes and typhoons, which has given its people and society “a unique resilience that empathizes with other peoples’ sufferings.”
Tzu Chi's disaster relief efforts have been witnessed by the world following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, hurricane damage in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and in Ukraine in recent years, Lin said.
The power of Taiwanese civil society groups is putting Taiwan on the world stage, he added.
Meanwhile, Yen thanked MOFA for establishing an official platform for closer cooperation between the two sides.
Yen noted that Tzu Chi has over 600 locations in 68 countries worldwide and also closely interacts with numerous international organizations and NGOs.
He said he believed that by working more closely with MOFA, both sides would be able to do more good, according to MOFA’s press release.
The Tzu Chi Charity Foundation was founded in Hualien County in 1966 by Taiwanese Buddhist nun Cheng Yen as a Buddhist humanitarian organization.
It has since become a leading global non-profit involved in disaster relief, medical aid, education and environmental conservation.
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