Ambassador Peter Sha-Li Lan, on behalf of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan), handed over the cheque of donation of USD52,259.90 to Mr. Hudson Nedd, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of National Security, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to purchase new monitoring equipment on activities of La Soufrière at the Beachcombers Hotel on 23rd June, 2022.
In his remarks, Amb. Lan said Taiwan was with SVG all the way after the COVID-19 pandemic and the volcanic eruption of La Soufrière. The purchase of this sophisticated monitoring equipment was part of the efforts under the bilateral “Pilot Project for the Implementation of Emergency Management System to Reduce Medical Emergencies in Saint Vincent and Grenadines”, which was jointly implemented by the Technical Mission of the Republic of China (Taiwan) and the National Emergency Management Organisation (NEMO) of Saint Vincent and Grenadines. Amb. Lan also expressed appreciation to other Taiwanese partners, including Ministry of Foreign Affair (MOFA), Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW), Taiwan International Health Action (TaiwanIHA), International Cooperation and Development Fund (TaiwanICDF), National Center for Research on Earthquake Engineering (NCREE-NARLabs), National Science and Technology Center for Disaster Reduction (NCDR), for their support to the project, and reiterated that the Embassy of Taiwan will continue working closely with SVG government in its national development and economic recovery after the the COVID-19 pandemic and the volcanic eruption.
On behalf of SVG government, Mr. Nedd expressed appreciation to the Taiwanese government for funding the purchase of the new monitoring equipment, which was necessary for tracking activities of La Soufrière. He said in this period of time when resources around the world are scarce, he’s grateful that the Republic of China (Taiwan) kept working with SVG in terms of cooperation projects and support to the specific needs of the country.
The handover ceremony was held after the virtual workshop “Disaster Prevention and Emergency Management in Taiwan” between Taipei and Kingstown, under the above-mentioned project. The attendees included Mr. Cuthbert Knights, Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Health, Wellness and the Environment, Dr. Frank Fuh-Yuan Shih and Dr. Chien-Hao Lin, Department of Emergency Medicine of National Taiwan University Hospital, Mr. Jerry Liao, Chief of the Taiwanese Technical Mission, Ms. Michelle Forbes, Director of NEMO, Ms. Donna Bascombe, Director of Health Security Unit, Lt. Deon Henry, Deputy Commander of Coast Guard Service, Mr. Billy Jeffers, Manager of Meteorological Services, Ms. Teresa Andrew, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, as well as their colleagues from respective agencies. (E)