1. Deputy Minister for Multilateral and Global Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Kang Jeong-sik will attend, as head delegate of the government of the Republic of Korea, the international conference on “Ending Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) in Humanitarian Crises” to take place in Oslo, the Kingdom of Norway, on May 23 and 24, 2019.

° The upcoming conference will be co-hosted by Norway, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to bring together efforts from the international community to end SGBV, from which about 1/5 of the people in humanitarian needs are suffering.

2. Deputy Minister Kang will emphasize that the most vulnerable groups, including women, children and youth, being main victims of SGBV in humanitarian crises, there is an imperative need for the international community to pay attention to this issue; explain the humanitarian assistance the ROK government has provided for SGBV related response; and announce that the ROK government will continue to take an active part in the international efforts.

° In particular, Deputy Minister Kang will introduce the “Action with Women and Peace” initiative launched by the ROK government in 2018; mention that the Korean government will convene an international conference on July 2 and 3 in Seoul as part of the efforts to implement the initiative; and ask for the international community’s attention and support in that regard.

3. During his visit to Oslo, Deputy Minister Kang will meet with State Secretary of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Marianne Hagen, during which the two sides will exchange views on matters of mutual interest, including ways for the ROK and Norway, which mark the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations in 2019, to expand cooperation on bilateral and global issues.

* unofficial translation