Taiwan's foreign ministry, Tzu Chi sign MOU on post-disaster relief

Taipei, Oct. 9 (CNA) Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) earlier this week signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Buddhist Tzu Chi Charity Foundation to enhance public-private sector cooperation in post-disaster relief and medical aid, MOFA announced on Thursday.

The MOU was signed by Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) and CEO of the Tzu Chi Foundation, Yen Po-wen (顏博文), on Tuesday at MOFA headquarters in Taipei, MOFA said in a press release.

The deal will see MOFA team up with the charity foundation so that diplomats can learn from Tzu Chi's rich experiences in conducting cross-border post-disaster relief and medical aid.

In this way, Taiwan's diplomats will be given more access to and first-hand experience with international cooperation, the press release quoted Lin as saying.

According to MOFA, Lin said Taiwan is an island that frequently endures natural disasters such as earthquakes and typhoons, which has given its people and society "a unique resilience that empathizes with other peoples' sufferings."

Tzu Chi's disaster relief efforts have been witnessed by the world following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, hurricane damage in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and in Ukraine in recent years, Lin said.

The power of Taiwanese civil society groups is putting Taiwan on the world stage, he added.

Meanwhile, Yen thanked MOFA for establishing an official platform for closer cooperation between the two sides.

Yen noted that Tzu Chi has over 600 locations in 68 countries worldwide and also closely interacts with numerous international organizations and NGOs.

He said he believed that by working more closely with MOFA, both sides will be able to achieve greater goods, according to MOFA's press release.

The Tzu Chi Charity Foundation was founded in Hualien County in 1966 by Taiwanese Buddhist nun Cheng Yen, as a Buddhist humanitarian organization.

It has since become a leading global non-profit involved in disaster relief, medical aid, education, and environmental conservation.