Ministry of Foreign Affairs Promotes 'Comprehensive Cooperation' with Caribbean Countries... Practical Collaboration in Healthcare and Food Security

10th Anniversary of the Korea-Caribbean High-Level Forum: Exploring Post-COVID Cooperation

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] On the 11th, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on the 9th that it will hold the "10th Korea-Caribbean High-Level Forum" and seek ways to strengthen practical cooperation with Caribbean countries in the fields of healthcare and food security under the theme of "Post-COVID-19 Korea-Caribbean Comprehensive Partnership."

This forum is co-hosted with the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Association of Caribbean States (ACS). At the opening ceremony, following the welcome address by Choi Jong-geon, First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Irwin Larocque, Secretary-General of CARICOM, and Rodolfo Sabonge, Secretary-General of ACS, will deliver keynote speeches on the theme of "Impact and Response to COVID-19 in the Caribbean Region."

The first session, themed "Post-COVID-19 Healthcare Cooperation," will include presentations and discussions involving the Barbados Ministry of Health, Caribbean Public Health Agency, and Seoul National University Hospital. The second session, focused on "Post-COVID-19 Food Security Cooperation," will feature presentations from the Jamaica Rural Development Agency, Korea Rural Development Administration, and the Academy of Korean Studies.

Korea and Caribbean countries have been traditional allies cooperating on the international stage such as the United Nations. Both sides have collaborated through high-level forums, dialogue mechanisms, and development cooperation projects in areas including climate change, disaster response, energy, tourism, and e-government. They plan to continue close cooperation in response to COVID-19 going forward.

An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained, "The Korea-Caribbean High-Level Forum, marking its 10th anniversary this year, will discuss tailored cooperation measures in healthcare and food security, which have become the greatest common challenges for Caribbean countries after COVID-19. Based on this, it is expected to be a timely opportunity to jointly explore a future cooperation vision between Korea and the Caribbean region and to elevate post-COVID-19 cooperation between the two sides to a higher level."

Meanwhile, this forum will be broadcast live online through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Latin America and Caribbean Division social media (SNS), providing an opportunity to enhance the understanding and awareness of the Korean public regarding the Caribbean region and Korea-Caribbean cooperation directions.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.