Austral: Brazilian Journal of Strategy & International Relations
e-ISSN 2238-6912 | ISSN 2238-6262| v.9, n.17, Jan./Jun. 2020 | p.104-126
A LOOK AT TAIWAN’S COOPERATION
WITH PARAGUAY (2009 – 2019)
Maria Antonella Cabral López1
Introduction
The Republic of China - Taiwan is a complex territory because of its
historical development. This island of 35,980 km2 (Central Intelligence Agency
2019), is located 160 kilometres away from China, and was first occupied by
settlers of Malay-Polynesian origin and then by Japanese or Chinese settlers,
on which there are different assessments. Although there are previous
explorations towards the sixth century, it was towards the fifteenth century,
during the Ming Dynasty, when the closest contacts with China began. It was
subsequently established as the Dutch colony of “Ilha Formosa”, but this only
lasted a couple of decades until it was established as a district of the Chinese
province of Fujian (Toro Dávila, Chacón Morales and Pérez Le-Fort 2001).
In 1885 it was established as a province of China, which under the
Treaty of Shimonoseki, had to cede this island to Japan, that had won the first
Sino-Japanese war in 1895 (Ríos 2016). After the end of World War II and
the Civil War (1946-1949), the People’s Republic of China was established2.
This prompted the Kuomintang3 to reach Taiwan and establish, under the
leadership of Chang KaiShek, an authoritarian government with the United
States’s support (Arnone 2017). US recognition of Taiwan´s sovereignty, ceased
in 1979- even though it remains the same, but under other circumstances
(Library of Congress of the United States of America 2005).
1 Professor of International Economics at the National University of Asunción, Paraguay.
E-mail: antocabral@gmail.com
2 Due to the similarity in the official denominations, and in order to simplify the reading,
this article has chosen to name the Republic of China- Taiwan or Insular China as Taiwan (or
Taipei), and the People´s Republic of China or Continental China as China.
3 “Chinese Nationalist Party” (Arnone 2017).
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Maria Antonella Cabral López
This last fact influenced so that the countries of the West progressively
followed the same path. According to Ríos (2019), only 17 countries recognized
Taiwan in February 2019, all of them islands of the Pacific, the Caribbean Sea
and Latin America, an exception to the Vatican and Swaziland. The number fell
to 15 in September of the same year, when in the same week, Solomon Islands
and Kiribati stopped recognizing Taiwan4. In South America, Paraguay is the
only country that maintains relations with Taipei, which makes it a relevant
ally for this island.
Diplomatic relations between Paraguay and Taiwan date from 1957
(Embassy of the Republic of Paraguay in the Republic of China (Taiwan),
2018; Ministry of Finance, 2019). At that time, the Paraguayan Ambassador
in Venezuela, Carlos Montanaro, and Taiwanese Foreign Minister Yeh, Kung
Chao signed an “Agreement for Diplomatic Notes for the Establishment of
Diplomatic Relations” in Caracas (Fleitas 2017).
The bilateral relationship has extended over time and with relative
intensity. The purpose of this material is to present the fundamental aspects
of Taiwan’s cooperation with Paraguay in the last decade. The article is
divided into four sections: the first one introduces the issue of South-South
Cooperation (SSC); while in the second it considers Taiwan as an actor of
international cooperation. The third addresses the bilateral relationship
between the Asian country and Paraguay; summing up, it is presented a
synthesis on the cooperation carried out between 2009-2019.
Methodology
This research is a bibliographic-documentary type. For its
development diverse sources were used such as scientific journals, books,
periodicals, treaties, reports and other documents. The level of this research
was descriptive, since its purpose was to present the fundamental aspects of
Taiwan’s SCC with Paraguay for the 2009-2019 period. This issue is relevant
in attention to the dispersion of the available information and the shortage
of documentation about this issue. The main aspects and the synthesis for
the article were obtained through and analytical method, which allowed us to
reach and present these results.
4 The Solomon Islands announced its decision in 16/09/2019 and Kiribati in 20/09/2019
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A Look at Taiwan’s Cooperation with Paraguay (2009 – 2019)
Results
South–South cooperation: some previous concepts
Cooperation implies a link between international actors, which seeks
the mutual satisfaction of interests by making use of the resources available
for them for the implementation of coordinated and/or solidarity actions
(Calduch cited by Ayllón 2007). Sotillo (2011) explains the development of
cooperation as a part of international cooperation and this last theme does
not have a unique, adjusted and complete definition, valid for all times and
places.
The latter author argues that cooperation has been loading and
downloading content. Because of this, it is essential to be clear about
the priorities for development, since these are the ones that will serve to
establish the content and objectives that condition the types of development
cooperation (Sotillo, 2011). In this same sense, Calabuig Tormo et al. (2010)
present a review of the different predominant conceptions of development
and the influence which they have exerted on cooperation activities over the
last decades.
Likewise, Fernández Franco and Román Marugán (2013) cite four
characteristics of the international cooperation system: a. Discretionality,
because the basis is the free will of the donors; b. Plurality, because there are
different actors; c. Decentralization, because despite the role of the OECD
Development Assistance Committee, there is no central or hierarchically
superior authority; d. Adaptation to the historical context, since it must be
understood according to the moment, which reaffirms the above.
Those characteristics allow the inference that the typology of
cooperation can be very varied. The same authors establish three categories
for cooperation: a. According to its thematic scope (political, economic,
technical and development promotion); b. According to their degree of
institutionalization (informal or organic); c. By the number of participants
(bilateral, multilateral and triangular) (Fernández Franco & Román Marugán,
2013). In order to escape the scope of this material, there is no need to deepen
the different existing classifications and the one that considers the nature
of donors and recipients is directly addressed, depending on whether these
countries are from the north or south. According to this criterion, cooperation
can respond to the North-South logic, when the donor is a developed country
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Maria Antonella Cabral López
and the recipient is a developing country; and South-South56 when both
donors and recipients are developing countries.
SSC is therefore the result of the search for a greater presence of
emerging countries, which, lacking sufficient resources of hard power, use
cooperation to reinforce their presence and influence in the area of interest
(Velázquez Flores, Prado Lallande & Díaz 2015). Likewise, Hirst (2012, 17)
argues that SSC has an instrumental sense for foreign policy, which allows it
to be valued as a soft power tool.
Although the literature, mainly in English, considers that the fields
of study are: a. Financial funds for development (concessional loans with
or without subsidized elements and non-concessional loans at commercial
interest rate); b. Capacity building (technical cooperation, scholarships,
exchange of experts, etc.); c. Funds for trade and investment facilitation (export
credits, etc.), these are not the only ones. For its part, the studies about SSC
have considered both, reimbursable and non-reimbursable funds. (Malacalza
2019, 73).
This reflects a political-technical dimension of SSC, which relates to
instruments such as development finance and reimbursable funds in more
favorable terms, among others. Malacalza (2019), presents an interesting
summary of works that demonstrate this vision. The same author maintains
that in addition to this dimension there is another: the economic-commercial
one, which includes instruments such as non-refundable funds, on the related
quality, there is a “curious shortage of work” (Malacalza 2019, 72).
Taiwan as a player of international cooperation
Firstly, the reasons why Taiwan provides international cooperation will
be addressed. Following Chan (1997), there are two types of justifications,
one legal and the other social. The first is established in the Taiwanese
5 Cohn (2012) pointed out that the countries of the South are those least developed socially
and economically speaking. They generally have a colonial past, their income levels per capita
are more modest, the infrastructure for communications and transportation is inadequate and
access to technological resources is limited. They may present institutional short comings and
its relevance in the international system and international organizations is less significant.
6 Alemany, C., & Freres, C. (2018, p. 63) state that the South is considered as a group of
subordinate countries in the global system, which were not mostly distinguished, because
“they were not relevant”, since developed countries are the ones which determine the facts.
The same authors argue that although emerging countries have gained relevance, they are still
considered as an “undifferentiable set”, with the exception of the so-called BRICS or other very
particular sets.
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A Look at Taiwan’s Cooperation with Paraguay (2009 – 2019)
National Constitution (1947)7, which indicates in Article 1418, its interest in
fostering international cooperation. The second justification comes from
an amalgam of political, economic, humanitarian and even moral factors.
Taiwan recognizes these factors, as the island had previously received help to
improve their well-being, they should now be prepared to provided assistance to
less favoured countries9.
Secondly, Annette Lu, who was Vice President of Taiwan between 2000
and 2008, emphasized the notion of soft power and applied it to the case of
this island. Lu recognized five elements: a. Human rights; b. Democracy; c.
Peace; d. Love; and e. High technology. Among them, the first one stands as
the most important. Besides, Lee (2005) added three elements to those five:
1. The will of the Taiwanese people to defend their country; 2. A civil defence
mechanism; and 3. A close alliance with the United States and Japan. Those
elements can also be considered as reasons for the international cooperation
of this island.
The trajectory of Taiwan as donor started in 1959 when it sent the first
agricultural mission to Vietnam (Lemus Delgado 2017). Even though, at that
time, the country was still a developing one and a recipient of cooperation
from the United States and various cooperation agencies such as the World
Bank and the Asian Development Bank, among others (Chan 1997). So, this
was Taiwan´s first effort on SSC, that had been lasting since then.
During the 1960s, Taiwan undertook various initiatives within the
framework of the China-Africa Technical Cooperation Committee, which
implements agricultural projects with this continent. In 1972, this institution
was merged with the International Technical Cooperation Committee, which
led the country’s technical cooperation until 1988. Then the International
Economic Cooperation Development Fund (IECDF) was established. The latter
was dissolved in 1996 and the International Cooperation and Development
Fund (ICDF) was installed (Lemus Delgado 2017).
This evolution was influenced by external and internal factors. At the
international level, recognition by other states and geopolitics is decisive for
Taiwan’s circumstances. These aspects are closely linked to that of cooperation
in the Taiwanese case and are described below.
When the People’s Republic of China was founded (October 1st. 1949),
Beijing and Taipei began a struggle for international recognition (Rodríguez,
7 The constitution was amended in 2005
8 Chapter II: Fundamental National Policies, Section 2: Foreign Policy
9 Chan (1997) adopted this expression from an IECDF newsletter, where the Director of the
Department of Operations, Neville H. Huang, gives the reasons why Taiwan cooperates.
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2008). Until 1971, Taiwan held China´s representation at the United Nations.
Then, the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution 2758 (XXVI) by which
representatives of the People’s Republic of China were recognized for their
legitimacy in the organization and its quality of permanent member of the
Security Council. Therefore, Taiwan´s representatives were expelled.
Rodriguez (2008) explains that Taipei´s dominance in the issue was
reversed as an effect of some factors: the UN´s decision, the decolonization
process and the link between the Nixon Administration and Beijing. As proof
of this, Taiwan´s diplomatic recognition decreased rapidly. Only in Latin
America and the Caribbean, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Mexico, Argentina, Guyana,
Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela, Brazil, Suriname, Barbados and
Colombia had established diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of
China, between 1970 and 1980.
A significant year in the recent history of Taiwan was 1979. At that
moment, the United States, its main international supporter, changed its
position on the island. In addition to this fact, Beijing opened a reform
process. Furthermore, the Chinese Communist Party adopted modernization
under socialism instead of the class struggle as its national priority (Wong
2000).
This situation, coupled with internal factors, such as the growing
demand for citizen participation made Taipei modify its policies. Wong (2000)
points out that when Chiang Ching-kuo died, it switched to a “Pragmatic
Diplomacy” instead of the “Practical Diplomacy” that had been adopted until
then. This change implied: the coexistence with the People’s Republic of
China was less tense, less rigidity around denominations and symbols and the
improvement of relations with communist states. The subsequent end of the
Cold War also had its repercussions for Taipei nationally and internationally.
In 1987 Martial Law10 was repealed. This fact initiated a series of
reforms that also had an impact on the relationship with China (Cornejo 2008).
It is important to note that during the next years, Taiwan was developing its
democracy, but with the positioning of the People’s Republic of China, the
recognition of several of its allies turned to Beijing.
That is the reason why cooperation with allied with Taiwan and which
backed its international position had been very important, since it helped to
sustain its claims in the current scenario. At the same time, this policy has
been subject to the actions and instruments deployed by China in this dispute,
among which cooperation is one of the key elements (Lemus Delgado 2017).
10 It prohibited the formation of political parties, and also limited the possibility of gatherings
and freedom of expression (Herrera Feligreras & Lu 2006).
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A Look at Taiwan’s Cooperation with Paraguay (2009 – 2019)
After this brief review, some of the main features of the cooperation
granted by Taiwan will be mentioned. Chan (1997) asserts that the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs recommended to the ICDF that three conditions should
be observed in order to be able to be eligible for cooperation with Taipei: a.
Be a friendly country with Taipei; b. Have a good payment record; c. Gross
National Product per capita less than USD 2,500.
The first of the conditions cited was very comprehensive. The meeting
of the countries with which Taiwan maintained diplomatic relations and those
with which it did not have this type of relationship, but which allowed the
offices to operate under the name “Republic of China”. Likewise, those with
whom robust commercial or cultural ties are maintained; those who intended
to improve their relations with Taipei and those who were not hostile. As
noted, the criterion was broad and each case was addressed in a specific way
by the respective authorities. As an example, we can cite the case of countries
that were part of the Soviet orbit, which were negative at first and then
“friendly” (Chan 1997). The promotion of friendly relations with diplomatic
allies is explicitly mentioned as one of the first goals in the provision of aid in
the White Paper of the Taiwan Cooperation Policy (2009).
In addition to this last reason cited, this document points out as
additional reasons: the fulfilment of Taiwan’s responsibility as a member of the
international community11; the protection of human security; the retribution
to the international community; and the development of the humanitarian
sense.
The first region prioritized to receive cooperation was Asia as an area
in which Taiwan belongs and with which it maintains strong commercial and
investment ties. Secondly, Latin America and the Caribbean, as the region
where the greatest number of allies was located, followed by Eastern Europe
and Africa (Chan 1997).
In general, Taiwanese development cooperation is divided into
bilateral and multilateral. In the case of the first one, the following types of
projects will be carried out: assistance with basic infrastructure, technical
assistance, humanitarian assistance and those related to education and
training. Meanwhile, multilateral initiatives are divided as such: donation
to international organizations, contributions to funds for international
cooperation, investments and financing through international organizations
(Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Taiwan 2009).
11 Chan (1997) pointed out that the Taiwanese experience in cooperation, considering the first
it was both recipient and donor, allowed the country to transfer the knowledge of this process
to other developing nations. This process was called the “Taiwan experience” by Taiwanese
workers.
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In 1997, the Taiwanese government consolidated its diverse cooperation
projects in 1997 into a fund called the Taiwan International Cooperation and
Development Fund (ICDF n.d12), as previously mentioned. This institution
sought, in accordance with Art. 7 of its founding letter, aspects such as:
the promotion of social and economic development of recipient countries;
cooperation with international organizations, institutions or governments
that promote the promotion of social and economic development of recipient
countries; the provision of humanitarian assistance to refugees or countries
affected by natural disasters; technical assistance or services to strengthen
industrial capacity; the completion of missions that improve and develop the
agricultural, industrial, economic, medical and educational sectors of the
recipient countries; and others that strengthen international cooperation and
development with other countries.
The ICDF has a presence in the Latin American countries that it
supports. This institution cooperates through technical and medical missions,
humanitarian assistance projects, loans and investments and volunteers
(Table 1). According to the data published by the ICDF on its website (2019),
it has five technical missions in Central America and two in South America.
Those mission are located at: Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Belize, one
corresponding to Central America, Ecuador and Paraguay.
Table 1: Areas of cooperation of the ICDF in Latin America
Country
Missions Technical and
abroad and humanitarian
medical
assistance
missions
projects
Lending
and
investment
projects
Volunteer
Program
Youth
service
abroad
Guatemala
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Ecuador
Yes
Yes
No
No
Yes
El Salvador* Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Belize
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Honduras
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Nicaragua
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Panama*
No
Yes
No
Yes
No
Paraguay
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
• El Salvador and Panama stopped recognizing Taiwan’s sovereignty in August
2018 and July 2017 respectively (Ríos, 2019)
Source: Lamus (2017)
12 Also known as the acronym FDICT.
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A Look at Taiwan’s Cooperation with Paraguay (2009 – 2019)
The Bilateral relationship between Paraguay–Taiwan
The emergence of this bilateral relationship must be understood in
the context in which it had emerged. In 1954 Alfredo Stroessner, a military
officer who established a regime that ruled Paraguay until 1989 (Monte de
López Moreira 2012) came to power. Regarding foreign policy, Stroessner
was practically the only gravitational actor in the decision-making process of
Paraguay. The country opted for an international alignment with the United
States (Salum-Flecha 2012). This alignment developed into “a kind of marriage
of convenience of the Cold War” (Scavone Yegros & Brezzo, 2010, 150). Mora
and Cooney (2009) explained that this relationship with the United States
resulted in a strong anti-communistic regime, which followed Washington’s
guidelines in exchange for legitimation and help.
In addition to this alignment with Washington, there was a change in
the pendular policy that characterized Paraguay (Tini 2003). This fact caused
the country to shift the focus from Argentina to Brazil, in a new strategy
which was called “The March to the East” (Scavone Yegros and Brezzo 2010).
Moreover, relations with other political regimes such as the Apartheid in
South Africa and Chiang Kai-shek in Taiwan were articulated. These links
were marked by coincidences at the ideological level and the need to overcome
international isolation (Nickson 2014).
The relationship with Taiwan lasted over time despite the fact that in
1971 the General Assembly of the United Nations resolved to restore to the
People’s Republic of China all of its rights in the organization and expel the
representatives of Chiang Kai-shek through the Resolution 2758 (XXVI). This
caused the process of Taiwan receding in the international system, due to the
successive loss of recognition by other states.
Despite this, in 1979 the United States, Taipei’s main international
supporter, changed its guidelines and recognized Beijing (Wong 2000),
Paraguay continued its relationship with Taiwan. The strength of these links
can be seen through the number of bilateral agreements signed by both
countries. From 1957 to 2018, 75 documents were signed, which ranged
from diplomatic to cultural aspects, through commercial and economic
cooperation treaties (Embassy of the Republic of Paraguay in the Republic
of China (Taiwan) 2018). Table 2 provides a list of the agreements related to
cooperation signed by Paraguay and Taiwan in the period 1957 - 2007.
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Table 2: Agreements concerning cooperation signed between Paraguay
and Taiwan (1957/2007)
Name of the instrument
Signature
date
Ratification
in Paraguay13
Entry into
force
1
Trade and Economic Cooperation Treaty14
11/05/1962
Law 811
(18/07/1962)
29/12/1962
2
Act on Technical
Cooperation
Economic
26/08/1971
---
---
3
Agreement
by
Diplomatic
Notes
regarding the formation of the Chinese
Agricultural Technical Mission in
Paraguay (N.R. N° 1/73.)15
15/02/1973
---
15/02/1973
4
Educational Cooperation Agreement in 19/06/1990
the Scientific and Technological Field16
Law 113
19/06/1990
(03/01/1991)
5
Agreement
by
Diplomatic
Notes
concerning the Donation of USD 20
million for the construction of a new
headquarters for the National Congress.
(N.R. No. 18/94)
Law 560
28/04/1995)
03/05/1995
6
Letter of Intent on cooperation in the 26/08/1995
planning study of a new city of Asunción
---
05/10/1998
7
Memorandum of Understanding for 26/08/1995
the promotion of an industrial park in
Paraguay
---
26/08/1995
8
Agreement
by
Diplomatic
Notes 14/08/1996
regarding the Cyber Modernization Plan
of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (N.R.
No. 5/96.)
---
14/08/1996
9
Agreement by Diplomatic Notes for the
construction of a bridge between the city
of Asunción and the Western Region
(N.R. No. 9/97.)
17/09/1997
---
17/09/1997
10
Memorandum of Understanding on
financial cooperation to the agricultural
sector
17/09/1997
---
17/09/1997
11
Agreement by Diplomatic Notes on
the promotion of trade and training of
human resources
17/09/1997
---
17/09/1997
12
Agreement by Diplomatic Notes on NonRefundable Economic Cooperation for
the implementation of the metropolitan
network in the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs. N.R. No 10/97
10/10/1997
---
10/10/1997
and
21/12/1994
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A Look at Taiwan’s Cooperation with Paraguay (2009 – 2019)
13
Memorandum of Understanding on
Economic Cooperation Programs
17/08/1998
---
17/08/1998
14
Agreement by Diplomatic Notes of
Economic Cooperation Non-refundable
to be destined to the Export Project of
horticultural items, fruits, flowers and to
a lesser degree cattle
05/10/1998
---
05/10/1998
15
Memorandum of Understanding on the 16/09/1999
Action Plan
---
16/09/1999
16
Agreement on sending volunteers
---
27/11/2007
20/12/2005
Source: Compilation based on information supplied by Embassy of
Paraguay in Taipei (2017)
Cooperation projects during the 2009–2019 period
Taiwan’s cooperation with Paraguay is long-standing and has various
facets as previously noted. In this section, three aspects will be considered:
the bilateral cooperation agreements signed; the projects undertaken by the
ICDF; and other initiatives.
Bilateral Cooperation Agreements
1. During the 2009 – 2019 period, eight documents related to
cooperation were signed. They are cited below:
2. Act of Receipt of Disbursement of USD 71 Million from the Republic
of China (Taiwan) to the Republic of Paraguay (2009)
3. Agreement for Cooperation in Culture, Education, Science and
Sports (2009)
4. Agreement by Diplomatic Notes on the Modification of the
Agreement by Diplomatic Notes of 02/15/1973 regarding the formation of the
Chinese Agricultural Technical Mission in Paraguay (2010)
13 The ratification of the instruments is carried out according to the nature of the instrument
and its content. For this reason, there are in the previous table, instruments that required this
procedure and others that did not.
14 It was extended in 1972 for 10 more years and in 1995 an Update Protocol was signed.
15 In 1995, a Memorandum of Understanding on the strengthening of the TechnicalAgricultural Cooperation Plan was signed.
16 Extended in 1995, during an official visit of Paraguay´s President Juan Carlos Wasmosy
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5. Act of Disbursement of USD 737,000 granted by the Republic of
China (Taiwan) to the Republic of Paraguay for the financing of the priority
project of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2010)
6. Act of Disbursement of USD 500,000 granted by the Republic of
China (Taiwan) to the Republic of Paraguay for the project of the modernization
and strengthening of institutional management of the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs (2013)
7 Memorandum of Understanding on non-refundable financial
cooperation period 2013-2018 (2014)
8. Economic Cooperation Agreement (2017)
9. Memorandum of Understanding on non-refundable financial
cooperation period 2018-2023 (2018)
The first of the documents signed was the Act of Disbursement of
donation of US$ 71 million from the Republic of China (Taiwan) to the Republic
of Paraguay, which dates from July 9, 2009. The goal of the aforementioned
sum of money was the strengthening of the linkage and bilateral cooperation
between both countries and it would be destined to the priority programs
of the Paraguayan government (Government of the Republic of Paraguay &
Government of the Republic of China (Taiwan) 2009).
Within the framework of this donation, an advance of US$ 24 million
was delivered in 2008. This amount was used for the regularization of
settlements, agricultural policies, sustainable settlements, administration of
public works and housing solutions. With the signing of the Act, another
US$ 8 million was delivered, while before August 2010 US$ 8,888,400 was
transferred and the balance of US$ 30,111,600 was made available before
August 2013 (Ministry of Finance 2009).
The funds received, according to Decree No. 2775/2009, were
allocated to the programs and projects previously mentioned and other various
institutions. Some of them are mentioned below: the Ministry of Interior, the
Ministry of Education and Culture, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce,
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs17 and the Ministry of Defence, among other
State agencies.
The second of the instruments cited was the Agreement for
17 The record of donors received by the Ministry of Foreign Relations are reviewed in the seven
mentioned signed instruments, and also are a part of the distributions of donation of US$
71 millions that were made in the 2008-2013 period. The expenditure of US$ 737.000 was
destined to the “Project of Improvement of Technology and Communications” and of US$
500.000 to a project to improve the institutional management of the organization.
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A Look at Taiwan’s Cooperation with Paraguay (2009 – 2019)
Cooperation in Culture, Education, Science and Sports. It was signed on
September 8, 2009 and was intended to promote cooperation in the detailed
areas. Various actions would be carried out for this aim, for example: visits
from personalities, exchange of institutions, granting of scholarships, to the
promotion of cultural industries, to name just a few.
This agreement served as a framework for the creation of the TaiwanParaguay Polytechnic University, which was established as a public institution
in 2018. The majority of teachers are part of the staff of the National Taiwan
University of Science and Technology. It should be noted that in the first half
of 2019 it admitted 109 students in their four careers: Civil Engineering,
Electromechanical Engineering, Industrial Engineering and Computer
Engineering.
On April 8, 2010, an agreement was signed by Diplomatic Notes for
the modification of the conformation of the Chinese Agricultural Technical
Mission in Paraguay. The first of the points outlined was the interpretation
of the technical mission as part of the technical cooperation between the
parties and its execution in accordance with the Agreement of 1973. It was
also established that the mission projects should relate to the following topics:
a) Horticulture and fruit growing, livestock, processing of agricultural
products, as well as promotion and administration of agricultural industries
b) Aquaculture
c) Public health and medical cooperation
d) Cooperation and promotion of the economy and commerce
(Industrial Park)
e) Cooperation in the areas of information, communication or
technology
Two other points indicated were the places of implementation of the
projects, which should be agreed to by both governments, and the use of
resources in the initiatives carried out.
The documents previously cited in this section were signed during
the Fernando Lugo government18. With the arrival of Horacio Cartes (2013 2018) to power, new donations were made by the Taiwanese government, as
well as in the beginning of the period of Mario Abdo Benítez (2018 -). This
is a recurring practice overtime: the delivery of a donation from Taiwan to be
18 The Lugo government was in power since 15/08/2018 and was overthrown by a judicial
measure in 22/06/2012. He was succeeded by his Vice-President Federico Franco, that
delivered the power to Horacio Cartes.
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distributed, by the incoming government to the institutions or projects which
it considers as its priority.
The Memorandum of Understanding on Non-Refundable Financial
Cooperation 2013-2018 was signed in 2014. The same, a difference of the
diversity of initiatives considered in the previous period, that the total sum:
US$ 71 million, would be completely destined to the project “Che Tapyi Housing solutions”. Their objectives are “To improve the living conditions of the
inhabitants with the provision of housing, health posts, community centers, energy
and drinking water services and reducing the lack of housing for the population that
is in a situation of poverty and extreme poverty” (Ministry of Urban Planning,
Housing and Habitat of Paraguay n.d.)
Other actions were in 2017 a new Economic Cooperation Agreement
was signed between Paraguay and Taiwan. This instrument aimed to
strengthen the economic, commercial relationship and liberalize trade and
investment. It should be noted that it also considers diverse elements: Small
and Medium Enterprises, technical barriers to trade and intellectual property
and others.
Last but not least, it is important to mention that in 2018 the
Memorandum of understanding on non-refundable financial cooperation
2018-2023 was signed. This document was ratified by Law No. 6275/2018.
It contemplates, in accordance with the new bilateral agenda, projects in
the following areas: social and humanitarian assistance, education, housing
solutions, road infrastructure, security and defences, public health.
Projects undertaken by the ICDF
Taiwanese cooperation implemented, through the ICDF, resulted in
16 projects between 2010 and 2019 (Table 3). The majority is concentrated on
technical cooperation projects, representing 43.75% of the actions undertaken,
and humanitarian assistance 37.5%. The other areas of the ICDF action:
education and international training and loans and investments, are not so
relevant according to the observed data.
On Table 3, interesting features can be seen in the type of projects
financed. The first one is linked to the issues addressed in the cooperation
projects. It can be observed that there are three projects related to aquaculture
and the same number related to floriculture, as well as three initiatives related
to the topic of training of health professionals or health management.
Another significant feature refers to the time span of the projects.
Considering the majority of projects, already completed as of August 2019,
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A Look at Taiwan’s Cooperation with Paraguay (2009 – 2019)
the duration of the projects was, on average, 32.78 months. It should be noted
that the actions of the area of humanitarian assistance for the same period,
showed an average of 15.25 months, well below that observed for all technical
cooperation projects, which had an average duration of 46.8 months.
Table 3: ICDF cooperation projects in Paraguay (2009 - 2019)
Name of the Project
Area
Beginning Date
Date of
finalization
1
Floriculture Project
Technical
cooperation
01/01/2010
12/31/2013
2
Aquaculture Project
Technical
cooperation
01/01/2010
12/31/2013
3
Mobile medical mission
Humanitarian
assistance
01/01/2011
12/31/2011
4
Healthcare Personnel Training
Program
Humanitarian
assistance
01/01/2012
12/31/2014
5
Assistance to rural populations
affected by the food emergency
due to the effects of drought
Humanitarian
assistance
11/15/2012
12/15/2012
6
Feed Production Project
Technical
cooperation
04/01/2013
12/31/2017
7
Pacu Fingerling Breeding and
Cultivation Project
Technical
cooperation
11/24/2014
11/23/2017
8
Healthcare Personnel Training
Program
Humanitarian
assistance
01/01/2015
12/31/2015
9
Orchid Industry Development
and Tissue Culture Plantlet
Propagation Project (Paraguay)
Technical
cooperation
02/10/2015
11/23/2018
10
Health Information
Management Efficiency
Enhancement Project in
Paraguay
Humanitarian
assistance
01/01/2016
12/31/2019
11
Surubi Fingerling Breeding
and Cultivation Project
Technical
cooperation
12/01/2018
12/31/2022
12
TaiwanICDF Overseas
Volunteers Program
Humanitarian
assistance
01/01/2019
12/31/2019
13
Taiwan Youth Overseas Service
Technical
cooperation
01/01/2019
12/31/2019
14
Project to Strengthen Capacity
to Support Development of
MSMEs
n.i.
01/01/2019
12/31/2022
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Maria Antonella Cabral López
15
Project to Strengthen Capacity
for Commercial Production of
Orchids
Technical
cooperation
04/01/2019
03/31/2021
16
Overseas Professional
Mandarin Teaching Project
International
education and
training
n.d
n.d.
Source: ICDF (2019)
Other initiatives
Scholarships granted by the Taiwanese government are also an
important element of the cooperation of this Asian country with Paraguay.
According to Ferreira (2017) between 1991 and 2017, 304 scholarships were
granted to young Paraguayans and state officials to continue their studies
in Taiwan in disciplines related to Engineering, Business Administration,
Science, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science and Social Sciences.
Among them, there are several types. The first one is called “Taiwan
Scholarships” and they were awarded to 234 people in the referred period.
These grants comprise five years studies, including one year for language
learning.
There are also four other types of scholarships. First, the ones defined
as “Huayu Scholarships” through which it is possible to study ChineseMandarin for a period between 6 and 12 months. This kind of scholarship
had 41 beneficiaries between 1991 and 2017. The second type is the called
“Medical Scholarships” aimed at students in the health area. The third type
is the “Executive Master’s Scholarships online”. Through those, 12 public
servants have participated online studies in their native language. The last is
“ICDF Scholarships” that allowed 15 people to study undergraduate, master’s
and doctoral studies in English (Ferreira, 2017).
In addition to the initiatives mentioned above, there are other actions
that seek to promote economic cooperation between the two countries.
In these lines, only two of them will be mentioned: The Conferences on
Economic Cooperation and the promotion for the participation of Paraguayan
companies in trade fairs in Taiwan.
The Conferences on Economic Cooperation have been held since 1987.
This event, that happens from time to time without a definitive schedule, is
alternatively held either in Taipei or in Asunción. Authorities of the highest
level of both governments and businessmen of the countries, interested in
searching for business opportunities were the participants.
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A Look at Taiwan’s Cooperation with Paraguay (2009 – 2019)
It is important to mention that from different official agencies of
both countries, the participation of Paraguayan companies in trade fairs was
supported, specifically in Food Taipei. This trade fair is one of the most known
food exhibitions in Southeast Asia and Paraguayan companies participated in
various editions of it.
Finally, and despite not being the focus of this material, it is important
to note that there are also two loans from the Export-Import Bank of the
Republic of China, which are being honored. The first one dates from 2013,
amounts to US$ 20 million and was destined to development projects in the
agricultural sector. While the second, was represented by an amount of US$
70 million that was used for financing projects for agricultural cooperatives,
development of small and medium enterprises and construction of roads.
Some Final Thoughts
Taiwan has a rich history that encompasses various stages in recent
centuries. In the second half of the twentieth century, with the founding
of the People’s Republic of China, it had to put forward several efforts to
promote its international recognition against the ones that the RPC gained.
One of the countries with which it was linked is Paraguay. Since
1957 it has maintained uninterrupted diplomatic relations. Although the
relationship arose in the middle of the Cold War, it continued over time
despite the evolution of the international system and the various diplomatic
setbacks that this Asian territory had. Over the years this relationship
has become even more relevant. Since October 2019, 15 countries have
recognized Taiwan, of which this Latin American state is the only one
in the Southern Cone. This situation promotes that the relationship and
cooperation are intense.
South-South cooperation results from the need to increase the
presence of emerging countries, which use it as a soft power tool in the face
of their limited hard power. In addition, it is important to mention that
this type of cooperation has two dimensions. Firstly, a political-technical
dimension, in which development finance and reimbursable funds, are
considered in more favourable terms. Secondly, an economic-commercial
one, which includes, for example, non-reimbursable funds. The latest of
which was considered for the cooperation of Taiwan to Paraguay in the
2009-2019 period.
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Maria Antonella Cabral López
In the period considered in this research, eight instruments were
signed. They served as a framework for different projects. One of the main
features identified is the agreement signed at the beginning of each five-year
period of the incoming government. This document details the amount to
be donated and its purpose. The aims of the cooperation change according
to the interests of the incoming authorities and the bilateral agenda. During
the 2008 - 2013 and 2013 - 2018 periods, the amount donated was US$
71 million at each round. Meanwhile for 2018 - 2023 period the amount
committed was US$ 150 million.
It is possible to observe that the issue of housing solutions was
common in the projects undertaken. However, Lugo and Abdo Benítez
selected a list of other issues, while Cartes allocated the entire amount to
the “Che Tapyi - Housing Solutions” project.
Regarding the work of the ICDF in Paraguay, this institution
developed 16 projects between 2010 and 2019. And, as previously
mentioned, the majority of the projects focused on technical cooperation
projects and humanitarian assistance projects. The main issues addressed
in cooperation projects are related to aquaculture, floriculture and the
training of health professionals and health management, among others.
Another kind of cooperation are the scholarships, the organization of
Economic Cooperation Conferences and participation in trade fairs.
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A Look at Taiwan’s Cooperation with Paraguay (2009 – 2019)
ABSTRACT
Taiwan’s situation in the international system is particular and the recognition of
other states is key to its survival. Since 1957, Paraguay has maintained diplomatic
relations with this Asian country. This research aims to describe the South - South
cooperation of Taiwan with Paraguay during the 2009 – 2019 period, a very important
characteristic of the bilateral relationship between both parties. In order to do this,
we base the article on a descriptive bibliographic documentary research, considering
primary and secondary sources regarding the focus of the study. Among the main
results obtained, it can be seen that non-reimbursable cooperation projects are being
adjusted according to five-year negotiations, that there is some continuity regarding
the issues addressed by technical cooperation and the existence of other less known
initiatives such as conferences and participation in fairs.
KEYWORDS
South-South Cooperation; Republic of China (Taiwan); Paraguay.
Received on February 24, 2020
Approved on May 8, 2020
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