President Tsai meets delegation of Honduran National Congress President Mauricio Oliva Herrera
During a meeting on the morning of July 3 with a delegation led by Mr. Mauricio Oliva Herrera, President of the National Congress of Honduras, and his wife, President Tsai Ing-wen noted that Honduras has for many years supported Taiwan's participation in specialized agencies of the United Nations such as the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and the World Health Assembly (WHA). She expressed hope that in the future, Honduras would continue to support Taiwan's membership and participation in these organizations.
In remarks delivered during the meeting, the president noted that Honduran First Vice-President Ricardo Antonio Alvarez Arias had visited Taiwan just two weeks earlier, and that she was very happy to be able to welcome the delegation led by Mr. Oliva and his wife. She also said that the delegation members represent different political parties, so the Honduran Congress's support for friendly bilateral relations is clearly non-partisan.
President Tsai also pointed out that Honduras has seen notable achievements in areas such as public security and employment under the leadership of President Juan Orlando Hernandez, and in particular, his "Better Life Program" (Vida Mejor) has improved the living environment for millions of Honduran citizens. She also noted that in addition to Mr. Oliva's promotion of legislation in the Honduran congress, his wife is a coordinator for the "Better Life Program", and that the results of their efforts are clear for all to see.
President Tsai said that Mr. Oliva has represented the Honduran congress numerous times at regional forums for national parliamentary leaders and through exchange visits. She also said the ROC government hopes that this delegation, led by Mr. Oliva, will help foster deeper exchanges between Taiwan and Honduras in the future, especially between the legislative bodies in the two countries.
The president pointed out that this year Taiwan has already formed several trade missions and coffee-buying groups for trips to Honduras. At the same time, great progress has been made in drafting procedures for shipping Honduran agricultural products such as beef and melons to Taiwan, and those products will soon be available in Taiwan markets. She also indicated that Taiwan's government will continue to encourage businesses to invest in Honduras so that the two countries can harness the power of their public and private sectors to create win-win development.
President Tsai expressed special thanks to Honduras for their long-term support for Taiwan's participation in specialized UN agencies such as the ICAO, the UNFCCC, and the WHA. She expressed hope that in the future, Honduras would continue to support Taiwan's membership and participation.
The president pointed out that Honduras was the first stop on her tour of Central America earlier this year. She said that successive visits by President Hernandez, First Vice-President Alvarez Arias, Mr. Oliva and delegation members since her inauguration on May 20 last year show that Taiwan and Honduras have close ties, and that Taiwan looks forward to further cooperation between the two countries in the future.
The visiting delegation also included Honduran Congresspersons Jose Tomas Zambrano Molina, Gabriela Nunez Ennabe, and Francisco Javier Paz Lainez.