Ashraf AboArafe
His Excellency the Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Egypt, Kim Young Hyun, met with His Excellency Minister Yasmine Fouad, Minister of Environment, on January 22, to discuss ways to expand bilateral cooperation in the environmental sector.
Ambassador Kim pointed out that Egypt has proven its leadership to the world through its successful hosting of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in 2022 and its significant contribution to confronting the global challenges of climate change. Ambassador Kim praised Minister Fouad for leading Egypt’s efforts in implementing various innovative environmental policies including reforming the waste management system and introducing green bonds.
Ambassador Kim presented the Korean government’s recent contributions to combating climate change, including the pledge to provide an additional $300 million to the Global Climate Fund announced by President Yeon Suk-yeol on the occasion of the G20 summit in New Delhi last September. Ambassador Kim stressed that the inaugural Korea-Africa summit expected this year will serve as a great impetus for Egyptian-Korean cooperation in enhancing Africa’s capabilities in dealing with climate change.
Ambassador Kim said that he is happy that bilateral cooperation between Korea and Egypt in the environmental sector is active, especially in the field of “waste-to-energy W2E”. Previously, the Korean company JST succeeded in establishing solid waste treatment facilities that can convert solid waste into waste-derived fuel ( RDF) in Sohag, Minya and Mahalla. The Korean Ministry of Environment will also launch this year, in cooperation with the Egyptian Ministry of Environment, a new project focusing on technology transfer in the W2E sector. Through an $8 million project that will be implemented in the period from 2024 to 2026, the Korean side will build W2E facility and technology transfer center in Cairo, exchanging Korean knowledge and expertise in the region.
Minister Fouad said that she appreciated the Korean government’s cooperation in various projects and discussed Egypt’s efforts in creating environmentally friendly infrastructure to build a “circular economy” in the country. Minister Fouad added that she is looking to more Korean companies to search for investment opportunities in Egypt in the field of environment.
Ambassador Kim and Minister Fouad agreed that they will continue to work together to support ongoing bilateral projects and explore new projects of mutual interest in the environmental sector.
