TAIPEI, Taiwan, (TaiwanToday) – Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung and deputy finance minister Juan Ching-hwa attended the opening of the newly relocated office of the Central American Bank for Economic Integration in Taiwan October 7 in Taipei City, underscoring the country’s commitment to implementing the Diplomatic Allies Prosperity Project.
CABEI executive president Gisela Sánchez hosted the ceremony, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said, and other prominent attendees included Amb. Luis Estévez López of Guatemala and Amb. Katherine Meighan of Belize.
Lin said in a speech at the event that the office’s relocation to Tianmu would facilitate cooperation between the embassies of the bank’s member nations and Taipei City-based International Cooperation and Development Fund (TaiwanICDF), all of which are located in the Tianmu area.
The minister said that Taiwan has long been engaged with the financial institution’s various projects promoting economic and social development throughout Central America, including tackling global challenges such as climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic. He cited a joint project between TaiwanICDF and CABEI, begun this year, to provide loans to Guatemalan startups led by women.
In response, Sánchez lauded Taiwan as an important strategic partner for its active financing of sustainable development in Central American nations. The MOFA called the Taiwan-CABEI Partnership Trust Fund an illustrative example for its support of regional allies such as Belize and Guatemala.
Founded in 1960, the CABEI is headquartered in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Taiwan joined the institution in 1992 and holds the largest stock shares among the 15 member nations.