James CF Huang, Foreign Minister of the Republic of China on Taiwan, will on Sunday, lead a delegation to Banjul as a special envoy of President Chen Shui-bian.

The 15 member delegation will include representatives from the National Security Council of Taiwan, Taiwan International Cooperation and Development Fund, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Taiwan.

According to reports from the Taiwan Embassy in Banjul, during his two-day stay in Banjul, Minister Huang will also be granted an audience with President Yahya Jammeh. In this encounter, Mr. Huang is expected to hand-deliver an invitation to the Gambian leader to attend the Taiwan-Africa Summit scheduled for September 9 in the Taiwanese capital of Taipei. He will also convey greetings from President Chen and thank President Jammeh for his unflinching support to Taiwan in the international arena, besides exchanging views on issues of common concern.

During his stay in Banjul, Minister Huang will call on his Gambian counterpart, Bala Garba Jahumpa, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, who will lead Gambian dignitaries in receiving him at the Banjul International Airport.

Hospitality

As part of the activities outlined for the visit, Secretary of State Jahumpa will host a dinner in honor of Minister Huang and his high-powered delegation. During the dinner, the delegation will meet other Gambian high-ranking officials to exchange views on matters of common interest.

On June 9, Mr. Huang and his delegation will leave for Kanilai, where they will meet President Jammeh. This will be followed by a meeting and a luncheon with overseas Taiwanese and members of the Taiwanese Technical Mission, before his departure.

Diplomatic Relations

Since the resumption of relations in July 1995, the cordial relations between The Gambia and Taiwan have steadily grown from strength to strength. Concrete cooperation has been reached in areas of agriculture, health, education, women empowerment, vocational training and infrastructural development and so on, which has wonj1 acclamation from both countries.