Korea-Caribbean High-Level Forum Discusses Ways to Develop 'Comprehensive Cooperation Partnership'

Strengthening Cooperation in Healthcare and Food Security

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] On the 11th, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs co-hosted the 10th Korea-CARICOM High-Level Forum with the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) in a hybrid format of in-person and virtual meetings, under the theme of a comprehensive post-COVID-19 cooperation partnership.

On the Korean side, key figures from both the public and private sectors, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Rural Development Administration, Korea Meteorological Administration, Seoul National University Hospital, Graduate School of International Studies at Seoul National University, and the Academy of Korean Studies, attended in person. On the Caribbean side, presentations were delivered via video by Irwin LaRocque, Secretary-General of CARICOM; Rodolfo Sabonge, Secretary-General of ACS; Joy St. John, Director of the Caribbean Public Health Agency; and Peter Thompson, Director of Jamaica’s Rural Development Agency. High-ranking government officials from over 20 Caribbean-related countries, including Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Barbados, and Trinidad and Tobago?currently the chair countries of CARICOM and the United Nations Security Council?also participated.

Choi Jong-geon, First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, said in his welcoming remarks, "Over the past decade, the Korea-CARICOM High-Level Forum has steadily expanded practical cooperation in various fields such as climate change, disaster response, and e-government," adding, "This year, based on solidarity and cooperation through joint responses to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), we hope to develop the cooperative relationship between both sides into a comprehensive partnership."

To this end, he proposed supporting economic and social development in the Caribbean region through the ‘Korea-CARICOM Cooperation Fund,’ discovering customized cooperation projects utilizing the ‘Korean New Deal,’ and strengthening cooperation on international platforms such as the United Nations.

At this forum, participants from both sides deepened their understanding of the unique characteristics of Caribbean small island states and the constraints to their socio-economic development through presentations and discussions. They prioritized concrete cooperation measures to address the Caribbean region’s greatest post-COVID-19 challenges: healthcare and food security crises, aiming to build a comprehensive partnership.

In the first session on ‘Healthcare,’ participants reviewed the status of Korea-Caribbean cooperation in response to COVID-19 after the pandemic and agreed to actively promote specific cooperative projects focused on strengthening the Caribbean region’s healthcare capabilities, including training epidemiology experts, improving laboratory facilities, and enhancing COVID-19 diagnostic capacity.

In the second session on ‘Food Security,’ attendees shared awareness of the worsening food security issues in the Caribbean region due to climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic. They focused discussions on agricultural technology cooperation with Korea’s Rural Development Administration, such as crop variety improvement, and on rural development plans to strengthen self-sufficiency capabilities in the Caribbean region.

Caribbean participants expressed special gratitude for the Korean government’s humanitarian support, which greatly aided the Caribbean’s COVID-19 response. They also requested active cooperation in projects that meet the Caribbean’s development cooperation needs, such as digital transformation and renewable energy, utilizing Korea’s technological capabilities.

An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs evaluated, "This forum, marking its 10th anniversary this year, was significant in sharing the vision for cooperation between Korea and the Caribbean region after COVID-19 and in gathering opinions on concrete practical measures to elevate post-COVID-19 cooperation between both sides to the next level."

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