Ambassador Lim Hoonmin, Republic of Korea came to Ethiopia in January 2018, and has been serving as the 18th Korean Ambassador to Ethiopia and the Permanent Representative to the African Union (AU). The Ethiopian Herald approached Ambassador Lim Hoonmin to discuss on the bilateral relation between Ethiopia and Republic of Korea. Excerpts:
Herald: What kind of supports does the Korean Embassy extend to further cement the Ethio-Korea bilateral relation? What goals does the embassy have pertaining to economic, political and military diplomacy with Ethiopia?
Ambassador Lim: First of all, I would like to start with Ethiopia’s assistance in helping to protect Korea’s peace and freedom as the only African country that dispatched ground troops during the Korean War, and Koreans will always be thankful. During the summit held in August 2019, President Moon Jae-in of the Republic of Korea also publically expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, emphasizing the importance of partnership between Ethiopia and Korea.
Upon such historical foundation, Ethiopia and Korea’s bilateral relations have developed in diverse areas such as politics, economic affairs, development cooperation, cultural and people-to-people exchange.
Above all, the discussion on the measures to strengthen the two nations’ bilateral relations is taking place through the active exchange between the high-ranking officials of the two countries. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s official visit to Korea holds significance as the first one among the heads of state of African countries to have taken place since President Moon’s inauguration.
Further, Ethiopia was the first African nation visited by the South Korean Foreign Minister, Kang Kyung-wha, since her appointment to the position. Both events affirm the importance that Korea places on Ethiopia.
The field of development cooperation further shows the importance of Ethiopia to Korea. Recognizing that it is our turn to help, Korea has actively supported Ethiopia’s socioeconomic development.
As a result, Ethiopia has become a central partner for Korea’s ODA as the biggest development cooperation partner within the African continent. The first KOICA (Korea International Cooperation Agency) country office in Africa was established in Ethiopia in 1995, and other development cooperation agencies such as EDCF (Economic Development Cooperation Fund), KOPIA (Korea Program on International Agriculture) and KOFIH (Korea Foundation for International Healthcare) have also opened their country offices here.
Korea aims to continue facilitating development cooperation programs that correspond to Ethiopia’s socioeconomic development trajectory and its demands.
However, the level of economic cooperation, such as trade and investment, is still insufficient compared to its potential. It is time to further improve the bilateral relations in a mutually beneficial manner by expanding the two nations’ substantive cooperation such as trade and investment and people-to-people exchange.
During the Korea-Ethiopia summit held in August 2019, both President Moon and Prime Minister Abiy have agreed on the direction that the bilateral relations will pursue and decided to make active efforts towards it.
The Embassy of the Republic of Korea is also actively striving to strengthen the bilateral relations in diverse areas, with a focus on trade and investment promotion and the expansion of people-to-people exchange.
Herald: What kind of tasks the Korean Embassy in Ethiopia does to assist the members and the people of Ethiopia at large?
Ambassador Lim: The Korean government has been facilitating various programs for Ethiopian nationals and communities in cooperation with Korean corporations and NGOs working in Ethiopia. Among others, I would like to introduce three main programs.
The veteran program for the Ethiopian veterans who were dispatched in the Korean War and their descendants, the scholarship program for Ethiopian students, and Korean corporations’ CSR programs aimed at supporting Ethiopian nationals.
First, we are providing various supporting programs and projects for the Korean War veterans and their descendants as a token of respect and gratitude.
These include Korea re-visit program and scholarships for the descendants. Further, last November, we held an event to commemorate the opening of the Welfare Center for the Ethiopian Veterans built in Addis Ababa by the Korean Ministry of National Defense and the Lotte Group.
It was the nation’s investment in education that propelled Korea’s socioeconomic development that occurred in a short span of time. Through this experience, Korea has come to recognize that education for the future generation is indispensible.
As such, the Korean government is providing the opportunity for Ethiopian students to study in Korea for undergraduate, masters and doctoral degree programs through the fully-paid ‘Global Korea Scholarship (GKS).’ Many of Korea’s private universities also provide various opportunities to study in Korea.
At the private corporation level, there is also support provided for the development of Ethiopian communities. For example, in the medical field, the Myungsung Christian Medical hospital and its medical college provides medical services of good quality and trains future medical personnel. LG-KOICA Hope TVET College is another exemplary CSR program by the Korean companies.
When providing support to the Ethiopian communities, there is a big emphasis on the young generation’s capacity building, such as through scholarships and education opportunities, technical training, medical education, etc. Korea is aiming to expand on such contributions and support in the future.
Herald: What are the challenges that the Korean Embassy possibly faced in translating its goals?
Ambassador Lim: The Embassy of the Republic of Korea is aiming to continue focusing on substantive cooperation such as trade and investment, and expansion of people-to-people exchange.
For this goal, many private corporations’ voluntary participation is necessary. Many Korean corporations are paying close attention to Ethiopia’s economic potential, and are assessing the possibility of investing into the Ethiopian market.
However, various barriers to foreign investment in Ethiopia cause them to hesitate to enter the Ethiopian market. As of
now, the bilateral agreement of protection and promotion of investment, which provides a basic framework for attracting more foreign investment, has not yet concluded.
Taking this into account, the Embassy of the Republic of Korea is working to raise awareness about Ethiopia’s economic potential and the government’s support policies to Korean corporations by collaborating with the association of the Korean companies in Ethiopia and the Ethiopian government.
Simultaneously, the Embassy of the Republic of Korea is working together with the Ethiopian government to facilitate the conclusion of the bilateral agreement of protection and promotion of investment.
Herald: How far the Korean Embassy in Ethiopia has been doing in enhancing the people-to-people exchange (connectivity) between the two countries? Does the embassy work on cultural diplomacy? If yes, do brief us about that.
Ambassador Lim: People-to-people exchange is the basis for developing bilateral relations. Since the establishment of a direct flight route between Addis Ababa and Incheon in June 2018, the felt-distance between the two countries has decreased and people-to-people exchanges have increased.
Further, such route is the only direct flight that connects the African continent with Korea, thereby serving as a gateway into the continent for many Koreans.
The Embassy of the Republic of Korea is supporting the operation of alumni association of Ethiopian students educated in Korea in order to ensure that such people-to-people exchanges are utilized as long-term resources for advancing bilateral relations, rather than a one-time exchange.
The alumni was established by themselves to contribute to the development of Ethiopia’s economy and society. Going forward, it is hoped that they will play major roles for the enhanced connectivity between the two countries.
Also, in order to increase the familiarity of Korea for the Ethiopian nationals as the people-to-people exchanges between the two countries grow, diverse types of Korean cultural events are held each year, and the enthusiasm is increasing.
For instance, the embassy has held annual Korean Cultural Week events which include Korea speaking contest, K-pop festival, Taekwondo competition, Korean food festival, Korean movie screening, Korean traditional music show, and more.
Herald: Does the Korean Embassy in Ethiopia have any contribution for the capacity building of the youth and socioeconomic improvement of the community of Ethiopia?
Ambassador Lim: Ethiopia is a priority partner country of the development cooperation for the Korean government. And the priority cooperation areas include education, rural development, water management, health sanitization, transportation and energy. When facilitating an ODA program in Ethiopia, the Korean government critically assesses whether the program will help Ethiopia’s education and the sustainable development of the community.
The central contribution to education that Korea is facilitating in Ethiopia is the Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET). KOICA, a Korean ODA organization, has established the TVET colleges in Addis Ababa and other parts of Ethiopia to reinforce capacity building of its students.
A representative example is the LG-KOICA Hope TVET College, where the experience and knowledge of Ethiopia gathered by KOICA and LG’s staff training method combine to establish a college with outstanding results. Top students have the opportunity to be employed by LG Electronics’ Dubai branch.
The governmental organizations, such as KOICA, KEXIM, KOFIH, KOPIA, are operating in Ethiopia for community development by capacity building, raising awareness, facility renovation, and more. Furthermore, numerous Korean NGOs such as Good Neighbors, World Together, and World Share are also operating in Ethiopia for this purpose.
Herald: What kinds of life essences do the Korean people would like to share with the Ethiopians?
Ambassador Lim: Both Ethiopia and Korea have a long history and share many things in common. However, if I point out the life essence that I would like to share with the Ethiopian people at this point, it would be the values of the Korean people which have been the basis for the unprecedented experience of achieving democracy and economic development.
In the course of its development, the government of Korea and its people worked together for a common goal of national development.
Democratization and economic development was an outcome of state policy, peoples’ active participation, and self-help based on “can do” spirit. Bold investment in education also played a crucial role in this process.
Another value to share, especially with the Ethiopians, is the gratitude that the Koreans feel for Ethiopia’s participation in the Korean War. We will not forget the support that Ethiopia gave us during our difficult times, and will continue to reciprocate the support by providing assistance to the Korean War Veterans and their descendants.
On top of the government, the Korean citizens in Ethiopia have also voluntarily established a War Veterans Supporters to provide support to the Ethiopian veterans.
Herald: Do you have something to say on the current program of the embassy in Ethiopia.
Ambassador Lim: The Embassy of the Republic of Korea is actively working on boosting trade and investment between Korea and Ethiopia. In this regard, the embassy is focusing on addressing the challenges that the Korean companies are facing and providing more business-friendly environment to them, including the conclusion of the bilateral agreement on protection and promotion of investment in the near future.
Another important role of the Embassy of the Republic of Korea is to promote both the quantity and the quality of its development cooperation. To this end, the embassy develops and operates diverse development cooperation programs, and strengthens monitoring of those programs.
The Korean Culture week, which is held for one week each year, will continue to promote Korean culture and introduce Korea to Ethiopian nationals with the events such as Korean food festival, K-pop festival, Taekwondo competition and among others.
Herald: What are the upcoming forecasts of the embassy to success for?
Ambassador Lim: The relationship between Korea and Ethiopia does not simply rest on our past. In fact, our two countries are forging ever stronger, more practical, forward-looking, and mutually respected cooperation and partnership, through expanding areas of cooperation, strengthening people-to-people exchange and enhancing mutual understanding of the younger generations.
There is still much to be done to bring our partnership and cooperation into a new level. We are focusing particularly on the following three areas. First, we need to double our efforts to strengthen substantive economic and development cooperation.
Secondly, we will strengthen our efforts to enhance mutual understanding of younger generations of both countries by fostering an environment to engage them more and better.
Lastly, we will accelerate our efforts to build a stronger institutional foundation for our bilateral relationship to develop into a comprehensive strategic partnership.
Herald: At last, you are welcome to convey your message.
Ambassador Lim: Korea sincerely hopes that the Ethiopian government and its people, under the leadership of Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed, achieve democratic reform and develop Ethiopia into a more prosperous country successfully.
The Korean government will continue its best to support Ethiopia’s efforts and will always remain as a reliable partner and a true friend in the Ethiopia’s journey toward a better future. Thank you.
The Ethiopian Herald Sunday Edition 29 December 2019
BY MEHARI BEYENE
