President Ma Ying-jeou attended the opening ceremonies of the Sixth East Asia NGO Forum 2010, which is being held at the Taipei County Government, on the morning of June 24. In remarks to the gathering, the president elaborated on the status and principles of the ROC's foreign aid work.
The president said that Taiwan at present participates in 14 non-governmental organizations. The East Asia NGO Forum began in 2003, and the theme of this year's conference is "From Humanitarian Aid to Development Cooperation: Building a Collective Mechanism." A total of 180 experts and scholars from 13 nations are participating in this year's event and will hold discussions on a variety of issues, he said. The president expressed his confidence that this year's forum will be a great success.
President Ma said that in the past, the ROC's foreign aid work was primarily funded by the government. However, as Taiwan society has experienced vibrant development over the years, more and more non-governmental organizations are engaged in aid work, which he is pleased to see. The ROC government, the president said, in 1959 sent a group of agricultural technicians to Vietnam, marking the commencement of its overseas assistance. Since then, the scope of the assistance has continuously expanded, covering a wide range of areas including agricultural technology, light industry, vocational training and medical assistance. The president remarked that for many years both Taiwan and mainland China has invited frequent criticisms from the international community due to diplomatic competition. Some labeled the actions by the two sides as “dollar diplomacy” and “checkbook diplomacy.” He said that this tarnished the goodwill and achievements resulting from the several decades of foreign assistance by the ROC government, something that he said was extremely regrettable.
President Ma said he believed that it was crucial to turn the vicious cycle between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait into a virtuous cycle. Consequently, upon assuming the presidency he specially unveiled the concept of flexible diplomacy. He said he required all of the ROC's diplomatic personnel to engage in aboveboard diplomacy. He also announced a halt to the contentious competition and struggle between the two sides to win over each other’s allies. Over the past two years, he said, improvements have been seen in cross-strait ties. In May of last year, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued Taiwan's first White Paper on Foreign Aid Policy, which proclaimed that in the future all of the ROC's foreign assistance work must exhibit proper goals, be carried out in accordance with legal processes, and feature effective administration. Good results have been seen since the implementation of this policy, he said. For instance, the ROC successfully assisted the Marshall Islands in promoting medical and hygiene technology and is helping Nauru to develop at least six agricultural and livestock products within three years. The latter project has helped Nauru become entirely self-sufficient in these items, he said. Meanwhile, the ROC has helped the Solomon Islands construct solar power supply systems. In addition, an array of similar projects is being carried out in allied nations in Central and South America and Africa. President Ma specially pointed out the “Light for Africa” project that the ROC has been carrying out in Burkina Faso. The project features the combination of solar power technology and LED lights, developing a lamp that costs only US$10. The LED light in each of the fixtures can illuminate for four and a half hours, and it requires only 30-40 minutes to be recharged. This lamp will enable children in Burkina Faso whose households lack electricity to be able to study in the evening. President Ma said Burkina Faso has already placed large orders for the lamps, adding that he hopes the lamps will be promoted in other countries.
President Ma furthermore said a rescue team from the ROC was the first such team to arrive in Haiti after that nation's disastrous earthquake in January of this year. The team independently and in cooperation with other international rescue teams helped save the lives of over 10 individuals. To date, the government and private sector have provided US$16 million of donations and relief goods to Haiti, he said. In the beginning of June, the Minister of the Council of Agriculture personally attended an international conference on Haiti's reconstruction. The focus of the ROC's assistance work now in Haiti is on the construction of housing for disaster victims, vocational training and employment guidance, public hygiene and medical care, and care for children, he said.
The president stressed that the ROC has transformed from a country that received aid into a nation that exports assistance. The ROC looks forward to providing assistance in agriculture, vocational training, technology and medical care as a means to express its warmth and compassion. The president said the ROC has become a peacemaker and a provider of humanitarian assistance, adding that we are willing to support NGOs and continue to work together with these organizations in carrying out humanitarian assistance work.