Ethiopian Ambassador to South Korea Dessie Dalkie Dukamo speaks during an interview with Yonhap News Agency in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap
Ethiopia hopes for strong cooperation with South Korea as Seoul's aid and investment in key initiatives will help bolster the African country's drive for climate resilient development and long-term growth that benefit local communities, its top envoy has said.
Ethiopian Ambassador to South Korea Dessie Dalkie Dukamo made the remarks in an interview with Yonhap News Agency on Wednesday, saying that Korea's technological prowess and industrial development experience can play a key role in supporting Ethiopia's efforts toward sustainable growth.
"(Development cooperation should) align closely with Ethiopia's own green development and agricultural strategies, emphasize capacity-building and technology transfer, especially in forest management and climate-smart agriculture," Dukamo said.
"If we combine Korea's experience in reforestation and digital innovation ... we can build a model of climate-resilient rural development that benefits both people and the planet," he said.
Ethiopia is pushing its "Green Legacy Initiative" to transform the country -- highly vulnerable to droughts and other natural disasters due to land degradation and deforestation -- into one that can better tackle climate change.
Launched in 2019, the flagship initiative centers on planting billions of seedlings nationwide every year, with the total reaching 39.6 billion trees at the end of 2024, according to its website. A related U.N. webpage states the reforestation program has created more than 767,000 jobs in Ethiopia.
Dukamo suggested green projects like these are areas where Korea's support, both in development aid and private-sector investment, can align closely with Ethiopia's priorities.
"We encourage responsible Korean private investment in agro-processing and green technologies so as to further improve localization and sustainability," he said.
"We are grateful that Ethiopia remains a priority country for Korean official development assistance," the ambassador added.
Source: Korea Times News
