President Tsai receives SICA head Cerezo, eyes expanded collaboration

2018/06/01

President Tsai Ing-wen received Marco Vinicio Cerezo Arevalo, secretary-general of the Central American Integration System (SICA), May 30 at the Office of the President in Taipei City, pledging to strengthen collaboration on regional development.
 
 Taiwan and the San Salvador-headquartered intergovernmental organization enjoy long-standing ties, as evidenced by the more than 120 cooperative projects implemented by the two sides since 1992, Tsai said. Ongoing initiatives span agriculture, medical care and talent cultivation, demonstrating Taiwan’s commitment to sharing its expertise and cutting-edge technology with the region, she added.
 
 Noting that she witnessed the results of these efforts during her state visit to El Salvador in 2017, Tsai said that these assistance programs are determined through regular in-depth dialogue with recipients so as to deliver the most effective, tailored solutions.
 
 Going forward, Taiwan will work with SICA to advance Central American integration and deepen collaboration with regional partners under the steadfast diplomacy approach, which seeks to expand ties on the basis of mutual assistance for mutual benefits, the president said.
 
 Tsai also thanked Cerezo for conveying concern after a magnitude 6 earthquake hit eastern Taiwan’s Hualien County Feb. 6. She added that his trip to Taiwan, following on from her visit to the SICA General Secretariat in 2017, reflects the staunch friendship between the two sides.
 
 Cerezo is in Taipei as the head of a three-person delegation. The group is on a fact-finding tour to gain a deeper understanding of Taiwan’s political, economic, social and cultural development, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
 
 The delegation visited the Ministries of Economic Affairs and Health and Welfare, the Cabinet-level Environmental Protection Administration as well as the International Cooperation and Development Fund (TaiwanICDF), the nation’s foremost foreign aid organization, the MOFA said. Also on the itinerary were stops at local businesses in industries such as green energy and software.

Source: Taiwan Today (https://taiwantoday.tw/news.php?unit=2&post=135369)