TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A donation of 300,000 Made-in-Taiwan masks has landed in Indonesia and is expected to be distributed to frontline medical workers fighting the coronavirus (COVID-19).

The donation will further strengthen the friendship between the two countries, said Taiwanese Representative to Indonesia John Chen (陳忠) at the handover ceremony on Thursday (May 14). Chen said Taiwan looks forward to collaborating with Indonesia on combating the disease so that life and the economy can return to normal.

Chen handed the 300,000 surgical masks over to the Indonesian National Board for Disaster Management on Thursday with Indonesian commerce officials also in attendance, according to the Taiwanese representative office in Indonesia.

The office said an Indonesian official expressed gratitude toward Taiwan and called for international cooperation and solidarity to overcome the crisis. As of Friday, Indonesia has reported over 16,000 coronavirus cases and more than 1,000 deaths.

The donation to the Southeast Asian nation is part of a Taiwanese government initiative launched in early April to provide masks to countries heavily hit by the ongoing pandemic. The masks were shipped from Taiwan on Tuesday (May 12) after a brief ceremony hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.