KOREA –AFRICA SUMMIT: Samia hypes clean cooking

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA:  PRESIDENT Samia Suluhu Hassan has called for enhanced partnerships to advance clean cooking solutions in Africa during her address at the inaugural Korea-Africa Summit yesterday.

Highlighting the critical role Korea can play, President Samia said that clean cooking not only benefits the environment by lowering emissions and reducing deforestation but also improves public health by reducing respiratory illnesses and empowering women.

“Since I’m the only woman executive president in this room, I must speak about the agenda important to Africa and African women,” President Samia said.

“Investing in clean cooking solutions is part of just energy transition.” She pointed out the economic opportunities associated with developing clean cooking solutions within Africa, emphasizing the importance of “just energy investment.”

President Samia also announced a fundraising initiative in collaboration with the African Development Bank (AfDB) President Akinwumi Adesina, urging the Korean government to join the effort.

The two-day summit, hosted by host President Yoon Suk Yeol at the Korea International Exhibition Centre (KINTEX) in Goyang, brought together delegations from 48 African countries, including 25 heads of state.

Leaders of international organisations such as the African Union (AU), AfDB, African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), and Africa Centre for Disease Control (CDC), were also present.

President Samia expressed gratitude for Tanzania’s being among the participants in the significant event, held 18 years after Korea obtained observer status in the African Union.

She commended Korea’s remarkable transformation from a predominantly agricultural economy with limited resources to a developed nation in just 70 years.

“Korea’s inspiring story and spirit of determination, resilience, and resourcefulness are among the things that inspired all of us to attend this summit,” Dr Samia stated.

She described the summit as a golden opportunity to forge meaningful economic partnerships that address socio-economic development imbalances across the continent.

Tanzania, she said, has high expectations for a strong economic partnership with Korea, focused on technology exchange and mutually beneficial trade and investment.

President Samia pointed to Tanzania’s ongoing collaboration with a Korean company in graphite mining while inviting further partnerships in the extraction and processing of critical minerals.

Tanzania also supported Korea’s commitment to fostering shared prosperity and growth in Africa.

President Samia advocated for establishing frameworks that promote trade, investment, and collaboration between the private sectors of both regions.

President Yoon said Korea will bolster its official development assistance (ODA) fund to African nations to 10 billion US dollars by 2030, he said at the inaugural of the Summit.

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He also pledged to provide 14 billion US dollars of export financing to Korean firms to stimulate Korean investments across Africa.

“Today’s event marks Korea’s inaugural multilateral summit with African nations. This occasion affirms that African countries are key partners in realising Korea’s goal of becoming a global pivotal state,” he said in his speech during the opening ceremony.

He added, “By combining Africa’s youthful energy and abundant resources with Korea’s advanced technology and diverse expertise, I believe we can deliver sustainable solutions to global challenges,”.

President Yoon called for joint efforts to overcome transnational crises such as climate change, pandemics, natural disasters, food insecurity and supply chain disruptions, underscoring the importance of fostering partnerships founded on three key values mutual growth, sustainability and co-prosperity.

Emphasizing the need for a robust institutional framework to facilitate seamless economic cooperation, the president expressed Korea’s commitment to expediting the conclusion of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) and Trade and Investment Promotion Frameworks with African nations.

He also vowed to support Africa’s efforts toward regional economic integration through the AfCTFA launched in 2019.

“We will continue to explore sustainable cooperation measures for issues directly linked to future growth, such as the stable supply of essential minerals and digital transformation,” he said.

On the security front, the president pledged that Korea, along with what he described as “friends in Africa,” will strive to uphold peace on the Korean Peninsula and in the international community by thoroughly implementing UN Security Council resolutions.

Earlier this year, Korea began its two-year term as a non-permanent Security Council member. In his welcoming remarks, Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani, who chairs the AU, expressed aspirations for an elevated partnership between Korea and African nations.

Mauritania served as the cohost of the summit.

“It is essential to prioritise cooperation in key areas, particularly infrastructure, technology, agriculture, health and mining resources, as well as education and skills training,” Mr Ghazouani said.

A total of 12 agreements and 34 Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) were signed at the summit, according to President Yoon’s office.

These documents covered various areas, including key mineral cooperation, infrastructure and mobility, trade and investment, medicine and health, marine a