The Ministry of the Interior hosted an international seminar on disaster prevention and humanitarian relief Sept. 18 in the central county of Nantou, highlighting the government’s commitment to reinforcing global disaster resilience.
According to the MOI, guests from foreign representative offices in Taiwan joined experts and officials from home and abroad at the convention. Large-scale mobilization exercises for earthquake and disaster relief kicked off the same day, with over 1300 participants from central and local governmental agencies, the domestic private sector and overseas entities set to take part over three days.
The forum also saw the signing of a memorandum of understanding on disaster cooperation by Taiwan’s National Fire Agency and International Search and Rescue Germany, the MOI said.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang said that this year marks the 25th anniversary of the deadly Jiji earthquake, adding that a series of national disaster preparedness events take place each year on the date of the tragedy.
Among the international experts invited to speak at the seminar, a search and rescue team from Germany discussed the use of drones following the February 2023 earthquake in Türkiye to highlight the role of technology in rescue efforts, while specialists from the U.S. briefed attendees on response strategies for large-magnitude temblors.
Additionally, Japan’s Tokyo Fire Department shared its experience responding to the Noto Earthquake that occurred Jan. 1 this year. An official from the Canadian Trade Office in Taipei also shared observations on Taiwan’s disaster prevention systems and encouraged other countries to collaborate with Taiwan.
According to Liu, this year’s seminar and exercises involve particularly high international participation, signifying the high global regard for Taiwan’s disaster preparedness and laying a solid foundation for future transnational cooperation. (POC-E)
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