By Cho Jin-seo
The Korean government welcomed 45 ministers and vice ministers from 35 African nations to Seoul, Wednesday, and offered them more opportunities to form closer relationships with Korea in economic and social development.
Minister of Strategy and Finance Yoon Jeung-hyun called for a new initiative he called “RISING Africa, Together with Korea,” which included doubling its aid to the continent.
“In RISING which distinguishes Korea's cooperation policy toward Africa from others, ?R' stands for Responsiveness to needs. ?I' signifies Inclusive policy. ?S' indicates Sustainable growth. ?IN' refers to INtegrated economy, and ?G' is for Global efforts,” Minister Yoon said in his welcoming speech during the conference held at Hotel Shilla.
“We understand that a stronger Africa means a stronger Korea. That is how I envision our partnership,” he said.
Yoon said that Korea's approach to solving poverty in Africa is different from that of advanced Western nations ― Korea itself had suffered from poverty until a few decades ago and knows how to overcome it.
He also promised to double Korea's aid fund to Africa.
“To live up to these efforts, Korea will double the amount of the Economic Development Cooperation Fund for the region over the next 5 years. The fund will prop up the management of water resources, provide easy access to electricity and facilitate the construction of employment-friendly factories,” he said.
“I must admit that our aid volume is no match for that of the advanced big countries. But, I think our intellectual assets will be more helpful in the economic development of African countries,” he said.
With 45 ministers and some 100 staff from 35 nations, the delegation is the largest ever from Africa to Korea in history. The delegates will stay in Korea until Saturday, attend meetings with government officials and visit industrial sites.
Korea is hosting the G20 summit in November. It has included ``development'' in the summit's agenda, where it wants to discuss ways to help underdeveloped countries know how to catch fish, and not just give them fish.
During the presentation, Yoon showed a picture of a bicycle-powered threshing machine, which some Korean volunteer workers in Africa managed to assemble, as an example of such knowhow sharing.
Asian governments and firms have over the past few years been increasing their presence in Africa, partly in order to tap the continent's plentiful natural resources. Some in the West have been worried that this is a sign of “neo-imperialism.”
In a recent talk with reporters, Yoon rejected such claims, saying Korea was itself a victim of colonialism and he believes African countries do see the difference.
“I am certain that our economic development experience can help Africa build a self-sustainable economy. From a nation torn apart by harsh colonial rule and devastating war, we struggled as one of the poorest countries in Asia. But through ceaseless efforts, we accumulated extensive knowhow in navigating our way to economic success. We hope to put our experience to good use to help African countries find its way to prosperity,” Yoon said Wednesday.