Late on the afternoon of July 29, President Ma Ying-jeou met with a delegation led by Sao Tome and Principe National Assembly President Alcino Martinho de Barros Pinto, whom he briefed on the results of cooperation between the ROC and Sao Tome and Principe. President Ma also expressed hope that the two countries can continue to deepen their already strong cooperative relationship.
In remarks, President Ma stated that President Pinto is a senior politician in Sao Tome and Principe who has served as minister of environment, infrastructures and natural resources and has also been a member of the National Assembly, the chairman of the National Assembly's Committees on Social Affairs and Foreign Relations, and the deputy leader of the Movement for the Liberation of Sao Tome and Principe/Social Democratic Party (MLSTP/PSD). The president said President Pinto has a wealth of experience in party and political affairs, and his selection by the majority party to serve as National Assembly president is well deserved.
President Ma stated that in January of this year he led a delegation from the ROC to Sao Tome and Principe, where he was personally received by President Manuel Pinto Da Costa and President Pinto. President Ma said that the warm welcome he received made a deep impression on him.
Commenting on bilateral cooperation, President Ma noted that the ROC and Sao Tome and Principe established diplomatic relations in May 1997 and since then have jointly promoted a variety of cooperation programs, attaining notable success in medical care and public health. For instance, the president said, the ROC has a malaria prevention project in that nation which has reduced the local incidence of malaria from 46% to 4% and won applause from the World Health Organization. In addition, the ROC has assisted in the construction of the Santo Amaro thermal power station, which now supplies over 50% of the nation's power, he remarked. The ROC, the president stated, is presently researching how best to take advantage of Sao Tome and Principe's ample sunlight to develop solar power there in order to reduce diesel imports.
President Ma said that an emergency room and intensive care unit at the Central Hospital were completed at the end of June, and that he has also instructed the ROC's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Health and Welfare, and Taipei Medical University to formulate a special project to help establish clinics that focus primarily on outpatient services, including kidney dialysis services so that people can receive dialysis locally instead of traveling to Portugal.
Besides cooperation in the building of energy and hospital infrastructure, the president noted, the ROC is actively developing cultural, economic, and trade ties with Sao Tome and Principe. An arts delegation from the Taipei National University of the Arts staged performances in Sao Tome and Principe in September of last year, for example, and the Taiwan External Trade Development Council held a trade fair that concluded in October. This year, he said, youth ambassadors from the ROC will visit Sao Tome and Principe, and another trade fair will be held. All of these events point to increasingly close cultural and economic ties, President Ma stated.
The president also thanked Sao Tome and Principe for continuing to speak on behalf of the ROC at international venues and supporting Taiwan's participation in international organizations and activities. President Ma then wished Sao Tome and Principe successful and peaceful elections on October 12 for its National Assembly and local governments.
The delegation also included Independent Democratic Alliance National Assemblyman Mario Fernando, MLSTP/PSD Party Whip Jose da Graca Viegas Santiago, Democratic Convergence Party Whip Delfim Santiago das Neves, and Force for Change Democratic Movement/Liberal Party National Assemblyman Helder Cravid Bonfim de Menezes.