BELMOPAN, Belize - Prime Minister Said Musa this afternoon received a cheque for BZE$692,133.80 from the Ambassador of the Republic of China, Taiwan, His Excellency Charles Tsai.

The money is Taiwan's contribution to the Museum of Belize Project, the refurbishing of the old Belize City Prison.

In handing over the cheque, Ambassador Tsai said the Museum of Belize "will not only serve as a wonderful means of helping Belizeans to better appreciate their culture and heritage, but also as an educational tourist attraction."

Ambassador Tsai went on to say that the Museum will bring into play all the functions of collection, research, exhibition and educational tourism promotion. "It will also help the public gain a clear understanding of the connotations of culture in Belize, allowing the public to have a greater appreciation and interest in Belize's culture," said Ambassador Tsai.

When he accepted the Cheque, Prime Minister Musa thanked Ambassador Tsai and his government for their generous contribution to the project and said that the completed Museum will "exhibit our heritage, our history and indeed our artistic creation that are of a contemporary nature."

Prime Minister Musa also said that the Museum of Belize will not be just for antiquities. "It will not be a dead Museum," said Mr. Musa, "it will be a Museum that will hopefully inspire our young artists who continue to become creative and imaginative and indeed to inspire the Belizean people in our work of nation building."

After the brief cheque presentation, the Prime Minister took Ambassador Tsai on a brief tour of the Museum of Belize Project site.

The Museum of Belize is expected to be inaugurated on February 5, the same time that the Heads of Government of both CARICOM and Central America are meeting in Belize City.

Taken from www.cweek.com - REGIONAL NEWS January 17, 2002