BY PHUMELELE MKHONTA
MBABANE– Five more years!
The Kingdom of Eswatini and the Republic of China (Taiwan) have extended their bilateral economic cooperation agreement to 2028.
This happened during an engagement between Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen and Eswatini Prime Minister Cleopas Dlamini in Taiwan about two weeks ago. However, the matter on the trade pact between the two countries was only revealed a few days ago.
According to reports by the Taipei Times, Dlamini said he would soon arrange for his country, Taiwan’s sole diplomatic ally in Africa, to renew cooperation with Taipei during talks with Ing-wen and Premier Chen Chien-Jen, the person said.
The two countries signed their first bilateral agreement in 2008 with a term of 10 years, which in 2018 was replaced by a five-year agreement.
“The agreement is to include pledges by the Kingdom of Eswatini to continue supporting Taiwan’s bid to join international organisations, and for Taipei to facilitate the African nation’s economic development,” read the report.
Eswatini has been a diplomatic ally of the Republic of China (Taiwan) since the former colony’s independence from the United Kingdom in 1968.
The 2008 agreement called for Taiwan to provide aid toward developing agriculture, vocational skills training, trade, information technologies, education, infrastructure, public health and hygiene.
In 2018, then Minister of Foreign Affairs David Lee and former Eswatini Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Chief Mgwagwa Gamedze in Taipei signed an agreement that committed Taiwan to boosting bilateral trade. The two countries have had success collaborating on projects in the areas of agriculture, skills training, information technology and natal care, with Taiwan furnishing several medical and technical missions.
