PRESS RELEASE
EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF CHINA (TAIWAN) #20 NORTH PARK STREET, BELIZE CITY, BELIZE223-1862/227-8744FAX 223-3082
PUBLIC HEALTH AND MEDICAL SKILLS COOPERATION AGREEMENT AND RENAL FAILURE PREVENTION PROJECT WILL BE SIGNED AND IMPLEMENTED
February 4, 2016, BELIZE CITY, BELIZE—
The Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan) is pleased to announce that on Wednesday, February 10th, 2016 at 11:00AM at the Ministry of Health, H.E. Ambassador Benjamin Ho and Minister Pablo Marin will sign the Public Health and Medical Skills Cooperation Agreement and the Renal Failure Prevention Project between Belize and the Republic of China (Taiwan). After the signing ceremony, the above-mentioned Agreement and Project will be taken into force for 5 years and 3 years respectively.
According to the statistic figures released from the Ministry of Health, Belize, the prevalence rate of obesity in Belize is over 60%, and that the rate of hypertension and Diabetes among adults is over 30% respectively, which mainly contribute directly to the development of chronic renal failure. Thus adequate treatment of patients at the early stage to prevent the exacerbation can effectively reduce the socio-economic cost of the whole society.
This project will be implemented from February 2016 until January 2019 for 3 years. The total budget input will be approximate US$ 2.2 million, which will provide educational lectures to at least 16 thousand people, local training programs for at least 44 GPs, 4 case managers, 2 health information system technicians, and 250 community health workers. In addition, this project will also dispatch Taiwanese consultants specializing in the establishment of chronic renal failure prevention and control system to Belize on a minimum of 17 occasions. Furthermore, it also includes the establishment and launch of a tracking and management system for chronic disease cases, including alarm and follow-up functions, in at least one health institution at each level of the health system.
To facilitate the mutual cooperation in health field and enhance the welfare of people between Belize and Taiwan, is always the priority concern for both countries. To achieve this goal, even before this agreement is signed, under the arrangement of this Embassy, TaiwanICDF and the Far Eastern Memorial Hospital have twice sent medical professional groups to visit Belize to discuss and evaluate the possibility of implementing the said project. Through jointly efforts, both parties reached consensus and leaded to the signing of the said cooperation Agreement and Project. This signing signifies another milestone in bilateral cooperation between both countries.
