March 7, 2024
No.084
Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaushieh Joseph Wu met with a delegation from the Kingdom of Eswatini led by Governor of the Central Bank Phil Mnisi on March 7. The two sides discussed a number of topics, such as bilateral cooperation in various domains, both countries’ central banks and regulatory supervision, and banking industry exchanges. The delegation comprised prominent members of Eswatini’s financial services sector, including Chairman of the Financial Services Regulatory Authority Senzo Hlatshwayo and CEO of the Eswatini Stock Exchange Ncamiso Ntshalintshali.
Minister Wu stated that Taiwan-Eswatini diplomatic relations have endured for over 55 years. The friendship between the two countries is reflected by close bilateral cooperation in numerous areas, such as ICT, agriculture, education, medicine, public health, and women’s empowerment. He also took the opportunity to thank the government of Eswatini, which under the leadership of His Majesty King Mswati III has staunchly supported Taiwan’s international participation and actively spoken up for Taiwan at international events. Minister Wu added that the visit by Governor Mnisi would expand opportunities for cooperation between Taiwan and Eswatini in fields such as finance and carbon trading and that he looked forward to continuing to work with Governor Mnisi to elevate Taiwan-Eswatini cooperation across a variety of domains.
Governor Mnisi noted that the main purpose of the trip was to learn more about Taiwan’s financial system. Over the course of just a few days, he said that he had been deeply impressed by Taiwan’s comprehensive monetary policy, extensive foreign exchange reserves, innovative financial technology development, world-class carbon trading mechanism, and solid financial talent training programs and facilities. During his stay in Taiwan, Governor Mnisi added that he had been fortunate to witness the signing of memorandums of understanding on cooperation between the Eswatini Stock Exchange and the Taiwan Stock Exchange and between the Eswatini Stock Exchange and the Taiwan Carbon Solution Exchange. He stated that he hoped this trip would promote further cooperation and exchanges in related fields between Eswatini and Taiwan.
Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Remus Li-kuo Chen subsequently hosted a luncheon for the delegation led by Governor Mnisi, which was also attended by Central Bank of the Republic of China (Taiwan) Deputy Governor Yen Tzung-ta, Financial Supervisory Commission Vice Chairperson Jean Chiu, and President of the Taiwan Stock Exchange Chien Lih-chung.
During Governor Mnisi’s stay in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) arranged for him to visit the Central Bank, the Financial Supervisory Commission, the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the Taiwan Academy of Banking and Finance, as well as financial institutions that have interacted with Eswatini and Taiwanese companies that invest there.
Eswatini is an important diplomatic ally of Taiwan in Africa. MOFA will continue to work with other relevant ministries and agencies to jointly promote cooperation and exchanges between Taiwan and Eswatini in all areas, creating a win-win situation. (E)