Vice President Vincent C. Siew on the morning of June 13 met with Saint Lucia Prime Minister Stephenson King at the Presidential Building. Vice President Siew, on behalf of the government and people of the ROC (Taiwan), welcomed Prime Minister King on his visit to Taiwan.
Vice President Siew said that Saint Lucia is an extremely beautiful country that is home to kind and enthusiastic people. He said he hopes to have the opportunity to personally set foot on Saint Lucian soil at some point in the future and get a better feel for the nation's customs and people.
In speaking of Taiwan's economic development, the vice president noted that 30 years ago Taiwan was mainly an agriculturally driven nation. He said that at that time, farmers comprised an extremely large portion of Taiwan's population. Thereafter, Taiwan emphasized industrial transformation, and it successfully moved from being an agriculturally oriented country to an industrial one. This not only created many employment opportunities, but also helped Taiwan win praise as a green silicon island.
Vice President Siew stressed that agricultural development remains an extremely important part in Taiwan's industrial policy. He noted that agricultural output accounts for 2% of Taiwan's GDP and the farming population comprises 10% of Taiwan's total population. Even though Taiwan's high-tech output is significantly higher than agricultural production, Taiwan has not forgotten to make efforts to strengthen the quantity and quality of its agricultural products. These measures are helping to raise the international competitiveness of Taiwan's agriculture sector, he said.
The vice president furthermore said that the ROC has stationed an agricultural technical mission in Saint Lucia. The agricultural technology shared with Saint Lucia is significantly bolstering that nation's farmers. He said he hopes the two countries will continue to strengthen their cooperative relationship and boost mutual friendship.
Prime Minister King said that Taiwan's agricultural technical mission and cooperative programs between the two countries have had an extremely important impact on Saint Lucia's development. He said Taiwan's achievements in agricultural technology are clear to all. He said he hopes Saint Lucia and the ROC will continue to cooperate based on the foundation that presently exists and that his nation will learn from Taiwan's successful development experience.
Prime Minister King, Saint Lucia Minister for Agriculture, Lands, Fisheries and Forestry Ezechiel Joseph, and Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister Charlotte Mangal were accompanied to the Presidential Building in the morning by Vice Minister of Foreign Affaires Andrew Li-Yan Hsia and ROC Ambassador to Saint Lucia Tom Chou to meet with Vice President Siew.