Korean Prime Minister Meets Cameroon President to Request Support for Busan Expo

On Facebook: "'Expo Network' is a More Valuable Asset than the Expo"

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who is on a tour of five countries in Africa and Europe, is meeting with Paul Biya, President of Cameroon, at the Cameroonian Presidential Office on the 31st (local time). (Provided by the Prime Minister's Office)

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo visited Cameroon, the final country on his Africa tour, to request support for hosting the 2030 Busan World Expo.

Prime Minister Han officially visited Cameroon on the 31st of last month (local time), marking the first visit by a prime minister since diplomatic relations were established in 1961. Prior to this, Han visited Malawi and Togo to discuss development cooperation and seek support for the Busan World Expo bid. These visits were also the first by top-level officials since establishing diplomatic ties with Malawi and Togo.

After completing his visit to Cameroon, Prime Minister Han wrote on Facebook, “I told African leaders that I want to use the Busan Expo as a platform to share wisdom on economic development and climate change response with the world.” He added, “Perhaps the 'Expo network' built while traveling around the world is a more valuable asset than the Expo itself. If nurtured and managed well, this network will sometimes become our market and sometimes our shield and armor.”

In Cameroon, Prime Minister Han discussed bilateral development cooperation and promoted the Busan World Expo. During a meeting with President Paul Biya, he expressed Korea’s hope to make sustained contributions to Cameroon’s ‘Vision 2035’ (aiming to become an emerging industrial country by 2035).

Prime Minister Han also requested President Biya’s interest in the 2030 Busan World Expo bid and the 2024 Korea-Africa Summit to be held in Korea. He urged the international community to unite in responding to North Korea’s nuclear and missile provocations and asked for Cameroon’s support for the Korean government’s North Korea policy. President Biya evaluated the achievements of practical cooperation between the two countries so far and proposed deepening cooperation in the fields of mineral resources, agriculture, healthcare, and e-government.

Prior to this, Prime Minister Han also held talks with Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute. Han noted that Cameroon is the largest export destination for Korea Customs Service’s e-government and a key partner in the ‘K-Rice Belt,’ expressing expectations to expand cooperation in ICT, healthcare, agriculture, and capacity building between the two countries.

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