President Ma Ying-jeou met with Belize Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment Gaspar Vega and Mrs. Vega at the Presidential Office on the morning of May 20. The president, on behalf of the government and people of the ROC, extended a cordial welcome to Deputy Prime Minister Vega and Mrs. Vega on their visit to Taiwan.
The president remarked that Deputy Prime Minister Vega comes originally from the business community, having founded a television station, before he decided to enter public service as the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment. The president commented that Deputy Prime Minister Vega has displayed excellence in both the private and public sectors.
President Ma stated that he led a delegation to ROC allies in Central America in May of last year. His first stop on that trip was Belize. Besides meeting with Prime Minister Dean O. Barrow five times, the president recalled that he also met with Deputy Prime Minister Vega and invited him to attend the ROC's National Day festivities. Last year, however, due to the severe damage in southern and eastern Taiwan caused by Typhoon Morakot in early August, the ROC decided against making any special arrangements for the Double Tenth National Day. Consequently, Deputy Prime Minister Vega's visit was delayed until now. Nonetheless, the president said he is delighted that Deputy Prime Minister Vega has finally been able to visit Taiwan and that they have had another opportunity to meet.
President Ma commented that the bulk of the discussions he held with Belize officials during his trip there was related to agriculture and education. Taiwan has provided scholarships to 80 students from Belize to come to study in Taiwan. The ROC, the president said, also hopes to strengthen agricultural vocational education in Belize. He said the ROC is considering providing assistance to Belize to help it establish a sizeable vocational training center.
The president noted that given its geographic location and climate, Belize is extremely suited to growing paddy rice. The ROC's agricultural technical mission has been quite successful in growing paddy rice in that nation and developing varieties of rice seed suited for local conditions. The president said that during his visit to Belize he enjoyed a meal with representatives from the overseas compatriot community. The rice used in the braised pork rice they ate was grown in Belize, he said, adding that the flavor and texture of the rice was every bit as good as rice grown in Taiwan. He said the ROC government is confident that it will be able to help Belize develop into a rice production center in Central America. This will enable Belize to not only become self-sufficient in rice, but also export surplus output to other countries. Meanwhile, the president also expressed the gratitude of the government and people of the ROC to Belize for speaking on behalf of Taiwan in international settings.
Deputy Prime Minister Vega expressed his appreciation to President Ma for taking time out of his busy schedule to meet with him. He also passed along the best wishes of Prime Minister Barrow. Deputy Prime Minister Vega commented that this is his first visit to Taiwan and he is extremely pleased to be here. He said he hopes to exchange opinions on topics of mutual concern during his visit, adding that he looks forward to continued strengthening of cooperative relations.
Deputy Prime Minister Vega and Mrs. Vega were accompanied to the Presidential Office in the morning by Minister of Foreign Affairs Timothy Chin-tien Yang and Belize Charge d'Affaires to the ROC Efrain Ravey Novelo to meet President Ma. Also in attendance was National Security Council Secretary-General Hu Wei-jen.