KOICA Director Son Hyuksang: "International Cooperation Agencies Must Unite to Respond to COVID-19"... Emphasizing 'Team Korea'

KOICA Participates as an Outstanding Public Diplomacy Institution at the '2020 Global Korea Expo'

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] KOICA participated as an outstanding public diplomacy institution at the ‘2020 Global Korea Expo (GKC)’ held on the 9th at The-K Hotel in Seocho-gu, Seoul.

At the opening ceremony, Son Hyuk-sang, KOICA Director and co-chairman of the GKC Expo, announced the achievements of the ‘COVID-19 Response Development Cooperation Program (ABC Program)’ and emphasized international cooperation.

The expo, held from the 9th to the 11th over three days in both online and offline formats, is hosted by the National Research Council for Economics, Humanities and Social Sciences and Korea Land & Housing Corporation, with participation from over 70 government ministries and public institutions. It was planned with the purpose of establishing a shared and cooperative platform as ‘Team Korea,’ where the nation and all public institutions jointly respond through solidarity and cooperation to changes in the international environment threatening the world order after COVID-19.

Son Hyuk-sang, KOICA Director, emphasized an ‘integrated approach’ during the presentation of outstanding public diplomacy cases, stating, “Through the COVID-19 crisis this year, we realized that ‘the world is interconnected, and no single institution or specific sector can overcome the crisis alone.’ For global-level joint responses to be realized, institutions conducting international cooperation domestically must first unite.”

KOICA announced the current status and achievements of the ABC Program, which is part of the government’s initiative ‘ODA KOREA: Building TRUST for a Safe World Together.’

Director Son said, “Immediately after the COVID emergency occurred, KOICA activated a special task force (TF) for emergency management strategy and, together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, executed over 120 billion KRW in funds as part of the COVID emergency response projects.” He added, “In this process, by supporting walk-through diagnostic booths (159 units in 26 countries) and negative pressure carriers for patient transport (260 units in 9 countries), we protected the safety and lives of 23.2 million people worldwide and also played a pioneering role in helping Korean companies enter the global market.”

He also stated that KOICA will contribute to enhancing South Korea’s national prestige by prioritizing the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and aligning with the government’s external strategies such as the New Southern and New Northern policies and COVID emergency response programs.

Director Son explained, “KOICA agreed to implement five major programs with five Southeast Asian countries targeted by the New Southern Policy during the 2019 Korea-ASEAN Special Summit. This year, we are promoting the New Southern projects with a budget of 110 billion KRW, especially benefiting 350,000 residents in Vietnam and Laos through the ‘Peace Village Construction’ project linked to unexploded ordnance and landmine removal in the Mekong River basin.”