Speaking to Rudaw’s Shaho Amin from the Netherlands, Cosijn and his diplomatic team have decided to put themselves in self-quarantine for two and a half weeks prior to returning to the Kurdistan Region.
He says they are doing so to “arrive completely healthy and not infected” in the Region, as a way of showing their support to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in their fight against coronavirus.
The consulate in Erbil continues to collaborate with the KRG and private entities, says Cosijn, albeit at a slower speed due to measures to stamp out the virus that has claimed four lives in the Region.
Closest to Cosijn’s heart are the projects the consulate has taken on to make a difference and modernize the Region’s agriculture and food sector.
“The KRI could be an agriculture and food hub in the region,” stated Cosijn enthusiastically, whose country is the world’s second biggest exporter of fresh produce.
The Netherlands’ consulate has teamed up with the KRG and NGOs to support the building of “glass houses” in Erbil, a measure that would change the agriculture landscape in the Region.
There are a “lot of opportunities for the Kurdish people and the Dutch people to team up together,” added the consul general, who says his mission has been focused on building business relations.
Cosijn also revealed that his office is planning on proposing a security sector reform project for the Peshmerga, entitled Plan Holland.
“We envisage a Peshmerga that is even more capable, that is accountable to the public, that is affordable,” said the consul general, whose country has been involved in training the Kurdish forces in their capacity as members of the Global Coalition to Defeat Daesh, also known as the Islamic State (ISIS).
