1. Vice Foreign Minister Lee Tae-ho met with new Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana on February 15.

※ The UNESCAP is one of the five regional commissions under the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) established in 1947 to foster economic and social development in the Asia-Pacific region.

2. Executive Secretary Armida Alisjahbana expressed appreciation for the Republic of Korea’s contribution to UNESCAP, especially for the ROK government’s active support for UNESCAP’s regional offices* carrying out a range of activities in the areas of women, information and communication technology (ICT), and environment.

* The UNESCAP Subregional Office for East and North-East Asia (UNESCAP-ENEA) and the Asian and Pacific Training Centre for Information and Communication Technology for Development (APCICT) are located in Incheon, the ROK.

3. In the meeting, Vice Minister Lee Tae-ho and Executive Secretary Armida Alisjahbana agreed on ways to pursue “Strategic Cooperation Between the ROK and UN ESCAP,” consisting of five priority areas for strategic cooperation in specific fields and regions, and agreed to carry out joint projects between the ROK and UNESCAP based on the priorities.

o The priority areas for strategic cooperation are leaving no one behind (women and persons with disabilities); environmental sustainability (air pollution and resource efficiency); connectivity for the 2030 Agenda (trade, energy and ICT); ASEAN (smart city, connectivity, and active ageing); and Northeast Asia (statistics, energy, environment, disaster reduction and trade).

4. Vice Minister Lee took note that UNESCAP, as the only intergovernmental organization in the Asia-Pacific, was pursuing projects in a range of areas, and especially offered to step up environmental cooperation, including regarding the North-East Asia Clean Air Partnership (NEACAP), mentioning the Special Act on the Reduction and Management of Fine Dust, which entered into force today.

5. Executive Secretary Armida Alisjahbana’s visit to the ROK (Feb. 12-15) marked her first official visit to the ROK since her inauguration in November last year. The meeting between the Executive Secretary and the Vice Minister served as an opportunity to set priorities for cooperation between the ROK and UNESCAP, and thereby strengthen strategic cooperation between the two sides and give impetus to the ROK government’s New Southern Policy.

* unofficial translation