Con Amor de Santiago
It is a pleasure for me to be able to relate my experience in relation to the scholarship I was granted by the Government of Malaysia, through MTCP (Malaysian Technical Cooperation Program).
Between July and August of the present year, I participated in the course HACCP-Based Inspection System. HACCP is a Quality Assurance System whose main objective is to prevent biological, chemical and physical risks in foods.
The Government of Chile aims to be one of the top ten food producing countries for year 2010. Having specialized personnel with knowledge about Quality Assurance and Food Safety is an important tool for the realization of this objective. The knowledge I gained through MTCP course, thanks to the support of the Government of Malaysia allows me to contribute to the fulfillment of this greater objective, which is so important for my country?s development.
MTCP allowed me to know the Malaysian present situation related to Food Safety not only in theoretical terms, but also through hands-on experience by visiting food processing factories, were I realized that we in the technical aspect we have similarities but also cultural and religious differences. This fact gave me an integral view about the importance of the idiosyncrasy in the economical and production fields.
The possibility to know this wonderful country has been one of the most rewarding experiences in my life; the cultural diversity, the weather, people, really astonished me. I must also say the experience of meeting the other 90 classmates - from countries so different than mine - was incredible. Sharing both technical experiences and cultural knowledge makes me feel very grateful for having been granted this scholarship.
I would like to thank all MTCP organizers who took care of me during all my stay in Malaysia, even of my health condition as I had to go to the Hospital due to a mosquito bite which caused me fever. Luckily I felt very well in the end and it was only a minor incident.
At the closing ceremony the organizers asked me to show some typical Chilean dance and, together with my Chilean classmate, we did not hesitate and started to dance a 'cueca' for the whole audience. For us it was a way to express our appreciation for this unique opportunity we had been given.
Carolina García Darras, Santiago, Chile
Here are some memorable photos of my stay in Malaysia. Enjoy!
www.kln.gov.my/perwakilan/santiago
http://agrolink.moa.my/moa
http://agrolink.moa.my/jph/dvs/mtcp/mtcp-brochure07.pdf