Jang Sung-min, Future Strategy Planning Officer, Visits 10 West African Countries to Negotiate Busan Expo Hosting

Director Jang Delivers Key Points and Relationship Strengthening Messages of President Yoon's UN General Assembly Keynote Speech

Jang Sung-min, Director of Future Strategy Planning at the Presidential Office, visited West Africa from the 14th to the 23rd to negotiate the hosting of the 2030 Busan World Expo. The photo shows Director Jang Sung-min meeting with Bernard Goumou, Prime Minister of Guinea. Photo by the Presidential Office [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] Jang Sung-min, Future Strategy Planning Officer of the Presidential Office, visited the West African region from the 14th to the 23rd to conduct negotiations for the bid to host the 2030 Busan World Expo.

According to the Presidential Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the same day, Officer Jang first conducted negotiation activities targeting East Africa after visiting Kenya as a special presidential envoy for the inauguration ceremony of Kenya's new president on the 12th and 13th, then moved to West Africa to visit various countries and held a total of 10 bilateral meetings with high-ranking government officials.

He met with Bernard Goumou, Prime Minister of Guinea; Badara Aliu Jobe, Vice President of Gambia; and Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh, Vice President of Sierra Leone. He also met with the Foreign Minister of Guinea-Bissau, the Chief Diplomatic Secretary of the Senegalese Presidential Office, and deputy ministers from Liberia’s Expo-related ministries.

Officer Jang explained the key points of President Yoon Suk-yeol’s keynote speech at the United Nations General Assembly on the 20th and conveyed President Yoon’s message expressing hope to strengthen relations with each country.

He also discussed various measures to develop bilateral relations, including the promotion and expansion of projects to secure food in Africa such as the unified rice project, establishment of vocational training centers, capacity-building projects like civil servant training programs, high-level exchanges, and cooperation on the international stage.

In particular, in the region where China and Middle Eastern countries have considerable influence, Officer Jang provided a detailed explanation of Korea’s remarkable economic development, discussing Korea’s economic development experience, various knowledge and technology transfers, and capacity-building measures aimed at sustainable economic development rather than simple financial aid.

He also emphasized the intention to host the Busan World Expo to present solutions and future-oriented visions for global issues and challenges faced by the international community, such as pandemics, climate change, digital divides, and economic inequality.

Furthermore, he requested support for the Expo bid, stating the desire to share Korea’s development experience with African countries. The Presidential Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained, “All contacted countries positively evaluated Korea’s plan, and some expressed their support.”

Meanwhile, Officer Jang plans to continue activities for the 2030 Busan World Expo bid by directly visiting member countries of the International Bureau of Expositions (BIE) in regions such as Latin America in the future.

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