10th Anniversary of South Korea's OECD Development Assistance Committee Membership... 'Development Cooperation Week' from 23rd to 27th

Review of Achievements in Global Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development Over the Past Decade
Exploring Korea's Contribution Strategies for a 'Better World' in the Post-COVID Era

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is operating 'Development Cooperation Week' from the 23rd to the 27th under the theme "Beautiful Miracle, Dreaming of a Better World" to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Korea's membership in the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) this year, and is holding various events.

Korea joined as the 24th member country through a special review meeting for Korea's accession to the OECD Development Assistance Committee on November 25, 2009.

On the 25th, the 10th anniversary of DAC membership, the "2020 Development Cooperation Day Ceremony and High-Level Talk Concert" will be held, inviting experts from the government, aid implementing agencies, civil society, and academia to discuss the significance of the 10th anniversary of DAC membership and the future direction of Korea's development cooperation under the theme "10 Years of Korea's ODA and the Next 10 Years."

At this ceremony, congratulatory messages will be delivered by Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Nam-ki, Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Kyung-wha, Chairman of the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee Song Young-gil, and OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurr?a.

In addition, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs plans to listen to and collect opinions from various domestic and international stakeholders through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs-UN Development Programme (UNDP) Seoul Policy Centre expert seminar on the 23rd, the 3rd Open Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Forum on the 24th, a special lecture on global citizenship education by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) for youth on the 26th, and the Winter Academic Conference of the Korean Association for International Development Cooperation on the 27th.

Over the past 10 years, the government has strived to enhance the scale and effectiveness of its aid as a responsible member of the international community and a major donor country to eradicate poverty and promote sustainable development globally. Our ODA volume has more than doubled from $1.17 billion to $2.52 billion since joining the DAC.

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In 2010, the Basic Act on International Development Cooperation and its enforcement decree were enacted to define the fundamental spirit and goals of Korea's development cooperation and to establish a legal and institutional foundation for a more systematic and integrated ODA implementation system and project promotion. The Development Working Group (DWG) was launched at the Seoul G20 Summit, and Korea actively contributed to setting the global development cooperation agenda by hosting the 2011 Busan High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness. ODA linked with foreign policy, such as the New Southern ODA strategy, was also promoted.

This year, in response to the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), humanitarian aid and quarantine-related ODA have been expanded, and Korea has participated in international solidarity to share its response experience and supply vaccines to developing countries.

The government plans to continue contributing to the sustainable recovery of the international community after COVID-19 and to realize a "better world" where no one is left behind, based on Korea's development experience as a major donor country in half a century. A Ministry of Foreign Affairs official explained, "Along with the continuous expansion of ODA volume befitting Korea's national status, we plan to promote people-centered development cooperation and strive to contribute to solving major issues of the international community."

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