Taiwan has announced a debt relief plan for Haiti, Focus Taiwan reports. Under the plan, the Asian country will pay approximately USD12 million to USD13 million to cover the interest of Haiti’s loans to Taiwanese banks and defer the payment of the loan’s principal for five years. The plan was unveiled by Taiwanese Minister for Foreign Affairs C.T. Yang ahead of the Haiti aid summit on June 2 in the Dominican Republic.
Yang did not specify how much Haiti owes to Taiwan. However, a senior government official who spoke on condition of anonymity said the country’s loans amount to approximately USD88 million, Focus Taiwan says.
The interest relief is the best offer Taiwan can make because Haiti’s creditors are local banks and not the government, Yang explained.
“Every country faces different situations, and Taiwan is not able to simply write off the debts,” the minister added, as quoted by Focus Taiwan.
