Paying Back
The Korean government is planning to provide approximately US$300 million for four years to come for development projects in developing countries led by the World Bank (WB).
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Strategy and Finance Choi Kyung-hwan, who is staying in Washington D.C. to take part in the G20 Financial Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting, met with World Bank president Kim Yong on April 15 (local time) and signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to that end.
According to the MOU, the World Bank is to raise a matching fund corresponding to Korea’s US$300 million donation, and both sides are going to seek candidate projects in the fields of social infrastructure, environmental protection, energy, agriculture, and the like through annual policy coordination. Korea has worked with the World Bank for long, leading similar projects in Asia, Africa, and Latin America by means of the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF).
Also, the two parties reached an agreement regarding closer cooperation between the World Bank and the Green Climate Fund (GCF) for the preparation of financial resources against climate change. The Korean government is looking to provide more assistance for developing nations in the field of water resources management by making use of Korea’s advanced desalination technology.
In the meantime, the Deputy Prime Minister also met with Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) president Luis Alberto Moreno. The latter appreciated the agreement for NewCo establishment reached at the general meeting in Busan, and the former promised Korea’s active role in the organization for promoting economic cooperation between Latin America and Korea.