Korea Eximbank steps up financial diplomacy with 10 African nations
Hwang Ki-yeon, left, chairman and CEO of the Export-Import Bank of Korea (Korea Eximbank), shakes hands with Botswana Vice President Ndaba Gaolathe during a meeting on the sidelines of the 8th Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation Ministerial Conference in Seoul, Thursday. Courtesy of Korea Eximbank
Hwang Ki-yeon, chairman and CEO of the Export-Import Bank of Korea (Korea Eximbank), held a series of high-level meetings with officials from 10 African countries in Seoul to discuss development projects and ways to support Korean companies seeking to enter the continent's growing markets, the bank said Friday.
The meetings were held on the sidelines of the 8th Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation (KOAFEC) Ministerial Conference, which brought together government delegations from 45 African countries.
Hwang met with the vice president of Botswana and finance ministers from Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, Ghana, Egypt, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Lesotho and Sierra Leone on Wednesday and Thursday.
The talks covered each country's development needs, potential projects financed through the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) and ways to facilitate Korean companies' participation in development projects, according to Korea Eximbank.
One of the projects discussed was the construction of an artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technology training institute in Tanzania. The project, approved in August, is the bank's first EDCF-funded project in the AI sector.
Additionally, Korea Eximbank hosted an investment briefing Thursday on the sidelines of the conference to connect Korean companies with African governments and institutions and introduce potential business and investment opportunities.
Officials from the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Kenyan and Tanzanian governments, Ghanaian investment agencies and Korean companies took part in the event, where they shared information on projects in areas including AI and digital infrastructure.
Korean AI chipmakers FuriosaAI and Rebellions also attended the briefing, where they presented their technologies and explored business and investment opportunities related to the digital transformation underway in African countries.
"Through this year's KOAFEC meeting, we have broadened economic cooperation with Africa in areas that are key to the Korean government's economic strategy, including AI and digital technologies, culture and supply chains," Hwang said.
"Our role is to turn government-to-government cooperation into concrete projects and ultimately connect those projects to business opportunities for Korean companies overseas," he added.
The KOAFEC ministerial meeting, launched in 2006, is jointly hosted by Korea's Ministry of Finance and Economy, the AfDB and Korea Eximbank.