외교부

Congratulatory Remarks on the Occasion of

The 2022 Africa Week Opening Reception

May 25, 2022, Seoul

Your Excellency Carlos Victor Boungou,

Dean of the Diplomatic Corps and African Group of Ambassadors in Korea,

Your Excellency Ban Ki-moon, the eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations,

The Honorable Shin Hyun-Young, Secretary-General of the National Assembly’s Forum for Africa’s New Era,

The Honorable Lee Ju-Young, Former Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly,

Mr. Woo Tae-hee, Executive Vice-Chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry,

Ambassador Lyeo Woon-ki, President of the Korea-Africa Foundation,

Excellencies, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is my great pleasure to join you all here today at the 2022 Africa Week Opening Reception on Africa Day. On behalf of the government and people of the Republic of Korea, congratulations to our African friends!

We are celebrating Africa Day to commemorate the establishment fifty-nine years ago today of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), an entity the African Union (AU) succeeded twenty years ago. The AU and its predecessor OAU have played a critical role in strengthening economic, social and political solidarity among African countries and mobilizing common African efforts to address challenges faced by the African continent.

By the way, today’s reception is meaningful not just because we are celebrating the 59th year of African solidarity but also because this year marks the 60th anniversary of Korea’s diplomatic ties with many African countries, such as Gabon, Morocco, Senegal to name a few and of which we have presence of ambassadors here with us this evening.

Ladies and gentlemen,

For many years, people have said that Africa is a continent with great potential. I respectfully disagree. I believe Africa is a continent bringing its great potential into a reality.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the unprovoked war in Ukraine have been seriously disrupting the global supply chains. And against this backdrop, Africa is rising as a new player in stabilizing the global supply chains.

For example, last year, in the middle of the pandemic, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was launched, and as a result Africa has become the largest single market since the launching of the World Trade Organization in terms of the number of member economies.

What is noteworthy about Africa is that it is a very young continent, 70 percent of whose population is age 30 and below. The trend clearly shows that the number of productive population in Africa is increasing rapidly, and there are prospects that the global hub of manufacturing may shift to Africa sooner or later. As a matter of fact, African countries such as South Africa, Egypt and Morocco have already risen to major manufacturers of automobiles, auto parts and electronic products.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Cooperation with Africa, which is now a major player in economic, political and security arenas, is not an option but a must. And my government, with this in mind, is working on to host a Special Korea-Africa Summit in Seoul in 2024.

Under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, Korea is now endeavoring to become a global pivotal state that proactively contributes to liberty, peace, and prosperity of the world. And as part of this effort, Korea will lift its ties with Africa to a new height, to a more mutually beneficial and future-oriented one.

As a lead-up to the Special Summit in 2024, my government will seek expansion of economic cooperation, cultural exchanges, and people-to-people exchanges between Korea and Africa. In particular, the Korean government will spare no effort to assist in expanding the Korea-Africa trade volume, which has been stagnant around 20 billion dollars annually for the last fifteen years.

In this regard, my Ministry held a meeting this afternoon with representatives of 20-plus Korean companies doing business in or with Africa to listen to the challenges they face. The Korean government, with 25 embassies in Africa, will work closely with its African counterparts to help these companies overcome those challenges and boost their businesses in or with Africa. I call upon all those Korean businesspeople and African ambassadors who are here today to work closely together in this joint venture.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Korea is ready to share its development experience with our African friends because we believe that Africa’s development will spur a virtuous circle of mutual benefit and co-prosperity between Korea and Africa.

Having said that, I am confident that one of the great opportunities for Korea to share its development experience with our African friends is the World Expo in 2030. As you are well aware of, the Korean government submitted Busan’s candidature for the World Expo 2030 a year ago.

Busan is a perfect example of modern Korea’s rise from the ashes. From the only major city left in the early days of the Korean War, flooded with millions of internally displaced Koreans, to the seventh largest shipping hub in the world today, Busan is ready to share Korea’s experience with our African friends through the Busan World Expo 2030. I would like to take this opportunity to ask our African friends to support us in this endeavor.

Thank you and once again, congratulations on Africa Day!

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