Dr. Lin Chia-lung
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Republic of China (Taiwan)
May 29, 2025
(As Prepared for Delivery)
Ladies and gentlemen:
On behalf of the people and government of Taiwan, I would like to extend a warm welcome to Minister Tshawuka. Your first visit to Taiwan is not only a demonstration of the deep friendship and close cooperation between our two countries but also reflects our shared commitment to food security and agricultural development.
Since establishing diplomatic relations in 1968, our nations have been loyal allies. For the past 57 years, Eswatini has consistently backed Taiwan’s international participation. I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to His Majesty King Mswati III and the government of Eswatini for their unwavering support.
Over the years, Taiwan and Eswatini have cooperated closely in various fields. We have maintained a fruitful working relationship, especially in agriculture. Farming is the backbone of Eswatini’s economy. Our countries have worked together to train agricultural professionals, who have gone on to play an important role in national development. Taiwan has been happy to share its experiences and expertise in successful business models.
Taiwan’s Technical Mission in Eswatini runs projects that promote agricultural development. For example, the Emerging Fruit Tree Production, Marketing and Capacity Building Project helps farmers grow guava, strawberries, and dragon fruit, which they can sell to supermarket chains. The Eswatini Aquaculture Project provides fish farmers with high-quality tilapia fry and gives them professional training to improve their knowledge and skills. And the Pig Industry Enhancement Project supplies Eswatini with superior breeds of pigs and is helping farmers develop their own breeding system to achieve self-sufficiency.
With strong backing from Taiwan, the World Vegetable Center cooperated with the Eswatini Ministry of Agriculture to set up a local office to implement the Taiwan Africa Vegetable Initiative. The project promotes research, addresses malnutrition, and increases planting and consumption of healthy vegetables in Eswatini, Benin, Madagascar, Tanzania, and Kenya. The initiative has helped improve food security and benefited people all over Africa. With the reengagement of Eswatini in the African-Asian Rural Development Organization, I look forward to our nations jointly contributing to rural development across the region.
Taiwan has recently been promoting the Diplomatic Allies Prosperity Project. Under this framework, we will continue to support Eswatini’s agricultural policies and export our technology and successful practices to Eswatini. We hope to engage in more exchanges in smart agriculture, agricultural transformation, and economic development. Our partnership will help meet people’s needs, increase farmers’ incomes, and create more job opportunities. This is in line with our vision to achieve shared growth and mutual prosperity.
I look forward to further strengthening our already close partnership to achieve even greater success. In closing, I want to once again extend a very warm welcome to Minister Tshawuka and his delegation. I hope your visit will be smooth and fruitful. Now, let us raise our glasses to toast the enduring friendship between our countries and the continued prosperity of Taiwan and Eswatini. Thank you.