President Ma Ying-jeou met on the morning of March 19 with European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) President Suma Chakrabarti. In addition to extending a warm welcome to President Chakrabarti on behalf of the government and people of the ROC, President Ma also expressed hope that the ROC and the EBRD will further strengthen cooperation based on the existing solid foundation, jointly promoting development and transformation of even more countries throughout the world.
In remarks, President Ma said that the EBRD has for many years assisted quite a few nations to transform from a planned economy to a market-oriented one, and build more pluralistic and democratic societies. The world community has taken note of these achievements, the president stated. The EBRD's mission of external assistance corresponds to the ROC's objective in recent years to actively serve in the international arena as a "peacemaker and provider of humanitarian aid," he said.
President Ma stated that on March 11, the ROC government donated US$125,000 to the Pan American Development Foundation, with the funds specially slated to be used to assist nations in the Caribbean and Latin America to fight the Ebola virus. Andrew Weber, the Deputy Coordinator for Ebola Response at the U.S. Department of State, responded to this gesture by saying that Taiwan has always respected international rules and has a democratic system that values human rights. Mr. Weber added that the ROC's determination to work together with the international community in fighting the Ebola virus has boosted Taiwan-US relations, which have never been stronger. The president commented that this proves the ROC is gradually gaining recognition throughout the world for its devotion to peace and willingness to aid countries in need.
President Ma stated that the ROC and the EBRD have consistently maintained strong cooperative relations since the bank's founding in 1991. As of the end of 2013, the ROC had donated a total of US$36 million to the EBRD's technical cooperation fund, ranking 15th among donating nations. If added together with the US$124 million of co-financing provided by the ROC in support of EBRD projects, the ROC's ranking would be fifth, behind only the European Union, Japan, Sweden, and the Netherlands. At the same time, companies from Taiwan take advantage of assistance projects promoted by the EBRD to expand their presence in emerging markets, the president said, further pointing out that in 2014 cooperation between Taiwanese companies and the EBRD generated over US$330 million in business opportunities.
The president commented that the biggest beneficiaries of the cooperation between Taiwan and the EBRD are the recipient nations. Citing the example of Taiwan's assistance to the city of Almaty, Kazakhstan in erecting LED streetlamps, the president noted that President Chakrabarti at the EBRD's annual meeting in Warsaw, Poland in May of last year emphasized that, "The Taiwanese experience was successfully modeled in Kazakhstan."
President Ma also explained to President Chakrabarti that Taiwan is a major exporter of solar power and LED equipment, and has also become the world's second nation to convert all of its traffic signals to LED lamps. Taiwan is currently planning to fully convert all of its streetlamps to LED lights in the next few years. Apart from its cooperation with the EBRD, Taiwan has also promoted related aid projects, including providing solar power equipment to allies in Africa, Latin America, and the Pacific. This is helping these countries become low carbon nations, the president stated, adding that this also constitutes part of the ROC's "viable diplomacy" policy.
President Ma stressed that recent estimates from the International Monetary Fund indicate that if calculated on a "purchasing power parity" (PPP) basis, Taiwan's per capita GDP this year would stand at US$43,600, which exceeds that of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) member states like Korea, Japan, the United Kingdom, and France. As Taiwan continues to develop economically, it fully understands its duty to assist the international community, the president said. The ROC has worked quietly in this regard for many years, he stated, noting that while the ROC frequently encounters difficulties in its cooperation with international organizations due to international political factors, we will not withdraw, and in the future we will continue to help many countries within our ability to do so. President Ma said that the cooperative model between the ROC and the EBRD has worked well. Besides providing mutual assistance, such cooperation has created new opportunities for many countries, and the president hopes that in the future the two sides will be able to strengthen cooperation, jointly promoting development and transformation of even more nations around the world.