The Diplomat
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, visited yesterday the headquarters of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) in Madrid, as part of his round of visits to the various departments of the Department since he took office.
During the visit, the Foreign Minister toured the Agency’s facilities, talked with the AECID’s management team and greeted the Agency’s workers, to whom he expressed his interest in their working conditions and daily affairs and thanked them for their “vocation for public service” and their important work for “Spain’s good international image”, according to the AEICID.
He also recalled his own personal experience at AECID, where he worked for several years as head of the Cooperation Department. “I am one of you,” said Albares, who donned a red aid worker’s vest, a gift from the AECID staff, along with a copy of the book La vuelta al mundo de Magallanes-Elcano. La aventura imposible 1519-1522, published by AECID’s publications service.
In addition, Albares, who defined himself as the “Minister of Cooperation”, assured the Agency’s managers and workers that he will work intensively on the reform of the Spanish Cooperation system already underway and will do everything possible to improve the working conditions of AECID staff.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs also reiterated the importance of international cooperation during these difficult months of pandemic and asked that all Foreign Service personnel be encouraged to get vaccinated in the Ministry’s offices during their stay in Spain during the holiday period, because “there is no other solution than vaccination, it must be our priority”. According to Albares, the COVID-19 pandemic is “the biggest challenge facing our generation,” so he called for an effort in support of the COVID-19 Global Access Fund for Vaccines (COVAX). “Either we all get out of the pandemic, or no one will be safe,” he insisted.
