Welcoming Remarks by H.E. Choi Jong Kun

1st Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs

On the occasion of the Third Seoul Dialogue on Africa

(December 8-9, 2020)

Thank you very much. I am very happy to be here. It is my first time to be part of such a dialogue on Africa. I look forward to very much further collaboration with our friends and colleagues from Africa.

Your Excellency Smail Chergui (스마일 쉐르기), AU Commissioner for Peace and Security,

The Honorable Sul Hoon, President of the Parliamentary Forum on Africa,

Your Excellency Carlos Boungou (카를로스 붕구), Dean of the African Group of Ambassadors in Seoul,

Ambassador Choi Yeon-ho, President of the Korea-Africa Foundation,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

As I said, it is my great pleasure to welcome all of you, joining us both on and off line, to the Third Seoul Dialogue on Africa. Since its launch in 2018 the Seoul Dialogue on Africa has established itself as a key Track-1.5 discussion platform on issues of importance to Africa and Korea.

This year COVID-19 has overshadowed the life and economy of Africa, as in so many places around the globe. In fact, when the pandemic began early this year, Africa was expected to be particularly vulnerable to the coronavirus. However, these expectations were wrong.  Africa has proven itself to be far stronger than expected, with the least number of confirmed cases and deaths so far when you compare Africa with the so-called developed continents and places of the world.  

And I believe that there are two reasons for this to happen.

The first is prompt and decisive measures like the institution of early lock-downs, a key lesson-learned during previous epidemics such as the Ebola and malaria outbreaks.

The second is the Africa CDC's strong coordination as a continent-wide control tower. The Africa CDC was instrumental in devising and executing a uniform, cross-continent response to the pandemic – at a time when multilateralism was at a very low point in many other parts of the world.

Africa was proactive in coordinating with health officials around the world in fighting COVID-19. In particular, during the early and most crucial days of the pandemic this year, Africa and Korea worked very closely in sharing expertise and equipment that helped suppress coronavirus cases in Africa.

This year, we sent 160 million U.S. dollars’ worth of assistance package to virtually all of the States in Africa – to be exact, 53 of the 54 countries in Africa, to help COVID-19 response. The continent-wide assistance to Africa demonstrates the will of the Korean people to overcome the pandemic in solidarity with the African people, under the recognition that "no one is safe until everybody is safe."

Our African partners including the governments of Morocco, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea were also instrumental in the return of Korean citizens from Africa. They allowed Korean residents to board chartered flights bound for Korea. I express our deep appreciation to the governments of Morocco, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea, for their assistance. Thank you very much.

And, Africa and Korea may be a continent apart, but I believe there are no limits to partnerships between us. I would like to elaborate on three areas where we can still and more continue to deepen our ties.

First and most pressing is cooperation in the area of public health. The Africa CDC was one of the key public health partners in Africa that the Korean government reached out to in strengthening the global COVID-19 response. We helped establish DR Congo’s COVID-19 Diagnosis Center. Pasteur Institutes and pharmaceutical companies in Senegal and Korea joined hands to conduct a clinical trial for COVID-19 treatment. Our health authorities and our pharmaceutical experts look forward to further strengthening public and private partnerships in this important area.

Second, Korea and Africa are partnering to intensify industrial cooperation across Africa. The soon-to-be launched African Continental Free Trade Area, so called AfCFTA, is poised to further integrate a 2.5 trillion U.S. dollar market into the global economy. Korean companies are employing young and skilled workers to manufacture high-tech electronics and automobiles that directly supply the African market and beyond.

Third, Korea will continue to be Africa’s genuine partner on its journey towards sustainable peace. We will help address the root causes of instability – in the Gulf of Guinea, the Horn of Africa, the Sahel region, and northern Mozambique – while sharing Korea’s development experiences.

In closing, I would like to stress Korea's partnership with the African Union as a key channel for strengthening cooperation between Africa and Korea. For this purpose, Korea has set up the Korea-AU Cooperation Fund and has been contributing to the AU Peace Fund. The Korea-Africa Forum also plays a valuable role in garnering political momentum to strengthen partnership with all AU countries. 

I believe that our discussions today and tomorrow will provide a valuable opportunity for us to foster an even deeper, and renewed sense of partnership between Africa and Korea.

Thank you very much.