Read-out of the FAO Director-General’s meeting with a Delegation from the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea

Rome – FAO Director-General QU Dongyu met today with a Delegation from the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea (ROK), including Lee Jae-jung (Vice Chairperson, Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee of the National Assembly), Kim Seung-nam (Vice-Chairperson and Member, Agriculture, Food, Rural Affairs, Oceans and Fisheries Committee of the National Assembly), and Kim Tae-ho, member of the 21^st National Assembly.  The delegates were also joined at the meeting by Ambassador Seong-ho Lee, Permanent Representative of the ROK to FAO.

The Delegation and the Director-General exchanged views on the strong partnership between the ROK and FAO, in particular touching upon the importance of multilateralism and the need for increased engagement globally to address hunger and transform agrifood systems to be more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable.

The Director-General expressed his appreciation for the ROK’s ongoing support to FAO, both bilaterally and multilaterally.  He also cited his recent trip to the ROK in May 2022 to attend the XV World Forestry Congress.

For their part the delegation and Ambassador expressed their appreciation for the opportunity to visit FAO, noting that the visit stems from concern regarding the current global food crisis and its effects.  In particular, delegation members highlighted their recent visit to Ethiopia prior to arriving in Rome, where among other activities they visited a refugee camp and saw first-hand the need for intensified and sustained livelihoods support to those most in need, worldwide.

The delegation also expressed concern about the climate crisis, noting the need to reduce emissions and adapt agriculture and food production accordingly.  In this respect, the delegation indicated that the ROK is pursing low-carbon agricultural and livestock products, and developing technological and innovative solutions to support this endeavor.

Discussions also touched upon the role of ROK in the multilateral system, with the delegation noting the intention to intensify engagement with FAO and other international organizations, and to open a new chapter of cooperation with FAO.  For his part the Director-General concurred and noted that the current global food crisis presents a key opportunity for ROK to increase its support to the work of FAO and its Members.

Specifically, the Director-General emphasized that South-South and Triangular Cooperation, FAO’s Hand-in-Initiative, and other Trust Fund contributions can be key entry points for the ROK to increase its technical and financial support to the Organization, and to those countries most in need.

The Director-General also highlighted that the ROK has much to offer the world in terms of technical expertise and capacity – to produce more and better, locally – given its experience in modernizing and transforming its agrifood systems in the past.