By Lee Jon Young 

Minister of Foreign Affairs Park Jin announced the launch of the 2024 Korea-Africa Summit Preparatory Commission and hosted its first meeting on October 13, 2023, in the presence of participants from 20 government agencies and other relevant organizations including the Korea-Africa Foundation.

Foreign Minister Park, in his opening remarks, explained that President Yoon Suk-yeol has been engaging in high-level exchanges with African countries more actively than any other previous administrations since his inauguration in May 2022, based on his strong willingness to dramatically strengthen diplomacy with those countries. Foreign Minister Park also emphasized that the Prime Minister and himself have been actively conducting high-level exchanges as well.

President Yoon held summits with the leaders of four African countries (the Central African Republic, Nigeria, Gabon and Kenya) during their visits to Korea and with the leaders of eleven African countries on the occasions of the G7 Summit in May 2023, the G20 Summit in September 2023, and the United Nations General Assembly session in September 2023.

Prime Minister Han visited Ghana and Mozambique in November 2022 and had bilateral meetings with high-ranking African officials on various occasions including the coronation ceremony of Charles III in May 2023.

Foreign Minister Park had a meeting with high-ranking officials including foreign ministers of eleven African countries and visited Ethiopia, Zambia and Rwanda in August 2023.

Foreign Minister Park appreciated the growing importance of Africa that could be seen from its great growth potential, abundant reserves of critical minerals including nickel and cobalt, potential to contribute to the stabilization of global supply chains, emergence as one of the largest markets with the launch of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). 

Furthermore, Foreign Minister Park said that the diplomatic leverage of Africa, which is comprised of 54 countries, has been expanding amid the growing presence of the “Global South.”

In addition, Foreign Minister Park stressed the necessity to establish a genuine partnership with Africa in order to realize the Korean government’s vision to become a “Global Pivotal State,” and mentioned that the 2024 Korea-Africa Summit will be a milestone for Korea’s diplomacy toward Africa. 

In particular, Foreign Minister Park said that African countries appreciated Korea’s experience of transforming itself from an official development assistance (ODA) recipient to an ODA donor when he visited African countries last August. He added that the African countries were eager to cooperate more closely with Korea and showed high expectations for the Korea-Africa Summit next year.

Foreign Minister Park called for positive and systematic cooperation among relevant government agencies and organizations to identify deliverables that can meet such expectations and practically contribute to Africa’s development based on Korea’s fortes. 

In response, the participants shared projects and side events that they have been preparing, and agreed to work together to concretize projects and identify additional projects that can lead to mutually beneficial outcomes for Korea and Africa.