In the mid-20th century, the Republic of China has sought to give a new and modern meaning to Mencius by sharing its development experience with other countries in programs of technical cooperation.
Since 1954, nearly 1,300 foreign nationals from 21 countries have received training in Taiwan. Their studies and observations cover such fields of endeavor as agriculture, industry, education and public health.
The Republic of China has sent some 50 technical missions abroad to provide consultant services. The exact number of persons involved is not known. Some are invited under private contracts. Others are dispatched by the government or recruited by the United Nations. Serving more than 30 countries, missions may stay for as short a period as a few weeks or for as long as three years.
In providing technical assistance, the Republic of China does not claim to have developed the world's best in agriculture or industry. What it offers is the experience of an underdeveloped country in achieving some measures of economic prosperity without loss of freedom or private initiative.
For example, China does not possess an outstanding agricultural system in the sense of huge farms and extensive mechanization. Its specialty is the small farm made highly productive by intensive labor and maximum utilization of land resources. To many developing countries in Asia, Africa and South America, this is especially helpful.
The Chinese enter upon cooperation projects in the tradition of giving, not taking. There are no strings. The objective is the promotion of friendship and the creation of a better life for all free peoples. What benefits others inevitably will also help China.
Training in Taiwan
Since 1954, the Republic of China has trained 1,279 persons from 21 countries in Taiwan.
The largest number—398—came from Thailand. Others are Vietnam, 306; Korea, 206; the Philippines, 161; the Ryukyus, 104; Laos, 31; Japan, 21; Cambodia, 13; Nepal and Dahomey, 4 each; Congo (Leopoldville) and Togo, 3 each; Central African Republic, Congo (Brazzaville), Ivory Coast, Libya, Madagascar, Niger and Senegal, 2 each; Mauritania and Pakistan, 1 each.
More than half, or 703, were trained in agriculture. Subjects included agricultural extension, farm association, agronomic development, crop and seed improvement, crop diversification, crop pest and disease control, farm management, home economics, land transfer administration, irrigation, rice improvement, rural youth leadership, sugar cane production improvement and soil fertility studies.
In industry and mining, trainees were mostly engaged in cotton spinning, caustic soda manufacturing, fire brick manufacturing, paper board manufacturing and sugar mechanical operations. The number of students was 119.
One hundred and ninety-nine were helped in the educational field: atomic reactor training, community schools, secondary and higher education and vocational education. One hundred and thirteen studied such public health and sanitation topics as disease control, improvement of nursing, malaria control and eradication, and public health education. Other fields of study included public administration, community development and transportation.
Trainees have found that conditions in Taiwan are similar to those of their own countries. Mr. Siripong Sukhonthasarnpa, third grade officer, livestock department of the Ministry of Agriculture of Thailand, said upon completing study of swine production in January of 1962: "Hog raising in Taiwan is mostly the same as Thailand in its conditions and problems. On this study trip, I got many ideas on how a country can solve the problems."
Geronimo A. Alilio, leader of a five-man group from the Philippines studying community development here, said last July: "These are all applicable to my country: land reform program, credit system to farmers, utilization of local associations, leadership development, extension work performed by experimental stations, nurseries for children ... "
Before coming to Taiwan, the trainees usually know little of China. Upon arrival, they express surprise at the island's beauty and prosperity. They are often impressed by hospitality and the Chinese way of life. Some find Chinese girls attractive. Nguyen Doanh, a trainee from Vietnam, won the heart of an express train stewardess, Miss Chiu Shueh-hsiang, and took her back to Vietnam as his bride.
Sugar Class
A typical example of the training program is the class sponsored by the Taiwan Sugar Corporation (Taisugar) for 30 technicians from Vietnam. Taisugar understood that with the establishment of a sugar industry in Vietnam, its export to that Southeast Asian country would be affected. Despite this, it undertook to train the Vietnamese beginning in May, 1960. After training here, technicians go to work in Vietnam's three new sugar mills.
Chinese forestry specialist, wearing cap, provides technical advice in the Ryukyu islands (File photo)
The class was divided into two groups, one for 10 agriculturalists and the other for 20 engineers. Before arriving in Taiwan, the 10 agriculturalists had no field experience in sugar cane cultivation. They were expected to become extension workers in charge of field offices and the like. As there was no demonstration farm in Vietnam at that time, emphasis was laid on extension and advisory work for contract growers. Special training also was given in improving the production efficiency of small cane farms, mostly without irrigation.
The curriculum consisted of fundamental agricultural science, the principles and techniques of sugar cane culture, the administration of sugar cane production, the basic knowledge of sugar manufacture and general courses. Classroom and laboratory studies were conducted at a sugar experiment station. After six months of study; students went to a plantation for group training in sugar cane cultivation, farm management and mill-grower relations.
The 20 engineers of the other group were high school graduates and a few had some experience in sugar production. They were expected to work as foremen after training. Special emphasis was given on-the-job training so that the participants could become familiar with the construction, maintenance and operation of mill equipment.
Seminar for Africans
Training for the first group was completed in May, 1961, and the second group in June, 1962. In the course of training, officials of the Vietnamese ministries of agriculture and education and other visitors from the United States, Malaya, Okinawa, Korea, Thailand and the Asia Productivity Organization came to see the program. All were impressed by the overall planning of the project as well as by the wealth of training materials and the effective methods of instruction.
Another typical training program was the Seminar on Agricultural Techniques for Africans. It lasted for six months and was completed in October, 1962.
Enrolled were 25 African youths from 11 countries: Dahomey, Congo (Leopoldville), Congo (Brazzaville), Togo, Central African Republic, Ivory Coast, Libya, Malagasy Republic, Niger, Senegal and Mauritania.
Subjects included rice cultivation, upland crops, farm demonstration and agricultural management. Students also saw a land reform program that has carried out a socio-economic revolution by peaceful means.
Life in Taiwan was described by the trainees as "happy and enlightening." Classes were scheduled from 9 to 11:30 a.m. and field work from 3 to 5:30 p.m. Classes often ran overtime because of eagerness to learn.
This seminar also was divided into two groups. One studied the techniques of planting rice. First came the question of seed—not only the variety, but selection of the seeds themselves. This involved laboratory work as well as lectures and reading.
Next was the technique of sowing. Seed must not be wasted. The seedlings are delicate and require proper spacing and care. If too many plants are packed into a given area, the plants cannot breathe and quickly perish.
Weeding received due consideration, as did such matters as insect detection and control, proper application of the right amounts of fertilizer, the making of compost, and the use of small power tillers and weeding machines. Irrigation was considered from every conceivable angle, including conditions under which adequate water is lacking. Measures of conservation studied included that of rotational flooding as opposed to the continuous method.
The African technicians learned how to determine the precise quality of the rice. Grading is important in the marketplace and for purposes of making subsequent improvement.
For the other group studying upland crops, classroom work and field sessions were devoted to the cultivation of peanuts, jute and corn.
For peanuts, cross-breeding and insect control are important. For jute, methods of sowing require emphasis. Development of better seeds also was stressed. Corn called for knowledge of fertilization, crossbreeding, weeding and insect control.
Land Reform
Many visitors to Taiwan said they were surprised that on this island with an area of only 13,808 square miles, about the size of the Netherlands, the rice crop is sufficient to feed more than 11 million people, a population as large· as that of Australia, and still leave some for export.
Alfred d'Souza, member of the Uganda Goodwill Mission that visited Taiwan last June, said: "I wonder if the people of free China conjured ears of corn from their sleeves."
Agricultural technicians from 11 African countries studied Taiwan paddy and upland farming (File photo)
He finally found that success was largely attributable to a land reform program that is one of the most successful in the world.
Under this program, the government bought land from absentee owners and resold it to tenant farmers for a price equal to 2½ times the annual yield of the main crop. The tenant paid 12½ per cent of the value of the principal crop in each six-month period for 10 years. With the last payment made, the land was completely his.
The land reform program is a gradual, peaceful social revolution that has provided farmers with incentives 'for increase of productivity and income. It has enabled farmers to make improvement on their land, build new equipment. With improved economic and social status, they are assuming greater responsibility and taking more interest in community activities.
The Chinese government is now planning a land reform seminar of six months for 20 farm specialists from South America.
It was first proposed by Dr. Joao Goncalves de Souza of Brazil, director of the Department of Technical Cooperation of the Organization of American States, when he visited Taiwan in April, 1962.
Scheduled to open early in 1963, the seminar will study such subjects as land policy, land rent reduction, sale of public land, land-to-the-tiller program, reclassification of land, urban land reform and general agricultural development.
The 50 technical missions sent abroad since 1959 have worked in agriculture, industry, fisheries, forestry, mining, public health and education.
Agricultural personnel are dominant. Most were sent by the government-sponsored Joint Commission on Rural Reconstruction. Some were invited by the World Food Organization of the United Nations.
The agricultural technical missions have provided consultant services to the Ryukyus, Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Iraq, Morocco, Libya, Liberia, Bolivia and the Dominican Republic.
Industrial Help
In industry, Chinese engineers have helped build and operate cement, plastic, rubber, sugar and food processing plants in Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Malaya, Korea and the Congo (Leopoldville). To recruit engineers, the China Technical Consultants, Inc., was organized in 1959. Most industrial cooperation projects were undertaken by private enterprise.
Rice grown by a Chinese farm team in Libya (File photo)
The China Fishery Corporation has signed cooperation contracts with firms in Italy, Liberia, Japan, Vietnam, Thailand and the Malagasy Republic. Activities include fishing, canning and boat manufacturing.
The Taiwan Forestry Administration has sent technicians to the Ryukyus as members of several missions to help in construction of windbreaks, reforestation and nursery operation. They have made recommendations to the U. S. Civil Administration in the Ryukyus.
The Civil Aeronautics Administration has sent four technicians to operate and maintain aeronautic communications facilities at the United Nations headquarters in Leopoldville. It also has dispatched two technicians to Saudi Arabia under a World Meteorology Organization program.
A five-man medical group sent by the Chinese government arrived in Libya last September to provide consultant services. Chinese teachers have gone to some French-speaking countries of Africa. Recently the government selected another group of teachers for assignment to the Congo (Brazzaville). They are expected to leave soon.
Since China and Vietnam held their first economic cooperation conference in 1960, a total of 130 Chinese technicians has been sent to that Southeast Asian country.
Achievements have been recorded in agriculture, industry and mining. Three large agricultural teams still are working there.
Farm Associations
The first team of 11 members, led by Y. K. Yang of JCRR, has been working on establishment of farmers' associations. Since 1960, the group has helped organize 48 district associations, 4 provincial associations and 6 fishery cooperatives. It also has completed a project to train 60 home economic advisors, 181 bookkeepers and 193 extension workers.
In establishing the associations, the team has taught Vietnamese how to handle the supply of rice and kerosene, cooperative marketing, distribution of fertilizer and sale of special products. It also has organized agricultural extension demonstration teams, held monthly farm study meetings and conducted demonstration meetings to lay a foundation for agricultural education projects.
The second team, led by Paul C. Ma, dean of the College of Agriculture of the National Taiwan University, also consists of 11 members. They have been working on improvement of rice, sugar cane, potato and other crops.
Since arrival in Vietnam in 1960, they have been working at experiment stations operated by the Vietnamese Directorate of National Agriculture. Chief assignments are to help the station staff members conduct tests on various crops.
The third farm team of six engineers is working on irrigation. It is led by Professor King Cheng of the National Taiwan University.
In the last two years, the engineers have provided assistance in planning 26 irrigation projects. Total area benefited is estimated at 123,000 hectares. They also have conducted irrigation experiments and basic studies of hydrology and irrigation agronomy.
Farmers in Africa
The Chinese government has sent farm demonstration teams to Liberia and Libya at the invitation of the two African governments.
The team in Liberia, consisting of 15 farmers, is working in an abandoned swamp area at Gbedin, about 190 miles east of Monrovia. It is 850 feet above sea level.
The Chinese arrived in Liberia last November. Work began on reclaiming 50 acres of land. Bushes were removed. An irrigation system was established. Materials at hand were inadquate. But with sandbags, stones, tree trunks and branches, they built a dam.
Latest reports indicate they have been reaping rice since mid-July. Crops have an average maturation time of 105 days and a yield of some 4,000 kilograms per hectare.
Liberians, who have imported rice, were surprised that it could be grown locally. Distinguished visitors have come from far and near to see what the Chinese team is doing—and how.
In mid-December of 1961, the United Kingdom of Libya invited the Republic of China to send a farm demonstration team to grow rice in the desert.
The team, consisting of six farmers, arrived in Tripoli last February. The working site is on saline land in Wadi Shatti of Fezzan province, about 620 miles southeast of Tripoli. Wadi means "lowland." It is a narrow, 74-mile-long strip. Geologists believe it was a river bed in former times.
First task was to build a drainage system to get rid of some of the salinity. Ditches were dug on all four sides of each plot. Water was let into the fields to wash the salt away. After 10 washings, salinity was reduced to a point where planting could begin.
By September, rice shoots were painting the edge of Wadi desert with green. Yield was reported at four metric tons per hectare. King Mohammed Idris EI-Senussi was gratified to learn that rice can be cultivated in the desert. Good crops of corn and sorghum also were reported.
Cooperation with Ryukyus
Because of similarity in geography and climate, Taiwan and the Ryukyus have been cooperating closely in agriculture.
The U.S. Civil Administration of the Ryukyus has sent 76 persons to Taiwan in the last two years to study animal husbandry, land utilization, irrigation and the growing of pineapple, sugar cane and vegetables.
Home economics class in Taiwan includes students from Laos (extreme right, against wall) (File photo)
Chinese experts have been invited to the Ryukyus. In April, 1959, a four-member technical mission led by Dr. T. H. Shen, commissioner of JCRR, arrived in the islands to study various phases of agriculture.
In November of 1960, a team of 15 technicians was invited to engage in field work. This mission was divided into groups working on use of hog cholera vaccine, forage crops, pineapple production, soil conservation, forestation and irrigation.
After a 40-day stay, suggestions were made for improvements. For example, the group on reforestation reported that the Ryukyus has some 23,000 hectares of denuded land and grassland, and that some, 53,000 hectares of forest land are in need of reforestation.
An extensive reforestation program was suggested for mountainous areas and planting of windbreaks was recommended along the coasts. Improvement of nursery management, demonstration planting and public forest management also was urged.
The suggestions were accepted by the Ryukyuan government. In March, 1962, 10 other technicians and specialists were invited to implement the recommendations. They have returned after completing their work.
Engineering Services
The China Technical Consultants, Inc., provides services to foreign countries with engineers recruited from industrial enterprises in Taiwan.
Companies supporting the program include the Chinese Petroleum Corporation, Chinese Coal Mine Development Corp., Kaohsiung Ammonium Sulphate Company, Ta Tung Engineering Co., Taiwan Fertilizer Co., Taiwan Cement Corp., Taiwan Power Co., Taiwan Sugar Corp., Yue Loong Motor Vehicle Co., Taiwan Aluminum Corp., Taiwan Alkali Co., China Artificial Fiber Corp., Ingalls-Taiwan Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., South East Soda Manufacturing Co., Hsin Chu Window Glass Works and Formosa Plastic Corp.
China Technical Consultants, Inc., has helped build many factories and plants in Southeast Asian countries. An example is construction of the Vietnam Textile Company plant. More than 60 textile, mechanical and electrical engineers were sent to Saigon to install and supervise beginning operation of the mill, which is equipped with 20,000 spindles and 400 looms.
Contracts between Taiwan private companies and foreign enterprises are numerous.
An example is the assistance given by the Formosa Plastic Corporation to the Malaya Industrial Plastic Corporation, which has a plant in Ipoh. Formosa Plastic supplied machinery and raw plastic resin amounting to 45 per cent of the capital of Malaya Plastic. The plant has a capacity of 400 tons of plastic manufactures a year, including pipe, garden hose, shoes and corrugated sheets.
The Chi Shin Enterprise, Inc., of Taiwan helped build a cement plant in Kuala Lumpur to be operated by the Malaya Industrial and Mining Corporation. It has a daily capacity of 80 tons.
In addition to cooperation with foreign enterprises, local companies have helped overseas Chinese communities to develop industries. Wholly or partly built by engineers from Taiwan are 12 Chinese-financed factories in Vietnam, 13 in Thailand, 8 in the Philippines, 4 in Malaya, 2 in Hongkong, and 1 each in Timor, Laos and Korea.
To encourage Chinese investment in foreign countries, the government last August promulgated the Statute of Technical Cooperation. Under this law, Chinese investors are helped to export equipment and other facilities abroad and are given guarantees of profit remittance.
Technical cooperation projects have shown that the Chinese are qualified to assist others. They are eager to share their knowhow in the Mencius' spirit of all men being brothers. In the Chinese view, this is more than a matter of gain for a country or its people. It is the only way to preserve freedom in a world that requires an ever-higher level of technology.