1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, together with the Korea Maritime Institute (KMI) and the Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology (KIOST), will co-host the 2^nd Republic of Korea-Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) Partnership Seminar at the Paradise Hotel Busan on July 8, 2021.

° The ROK-IORA Partnership Seminar, which was held in 2020 for the first time, is a track-1.5 consultative mechanism that the ROK government proposed at the 19^th IORA Council of Ministers Meeting in Abu Dhabi in November 2019. The Seminar carries significance in that it promotes mutual understanding and seeks out areas for substantive cooperation by providing a platform for policy and academic exchange.

° The upcoming Seminar will explore ways to step up substantial cooperation on the Blue Economy* area which is one of the eight ‘Priority Areas’ of IORA by bringing together government officials and experts from related research institutes and academia of the ROK and IORA member states as well as officials from the IORA Secretariat. The Seminar will be held in a hybrid online and offline format.

*Blue Economy: Sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods and jobs, and ocean ecosystem health. (World Bank, 2017)

° Under the theme of “Partnership for Blue Economy to Attain Sustainable Development in the Post-COVID-19 Era,” the participants will discuss ways to promote cooperation on the Blue Economy through three sessions: (1) Conservation and Sustainable Use of Fisheries Resources, (2) Promoting Sustainable Maritime Transport Connectivity, (3) Realizing the Potential of Blue Economy.

° The Seminar will be held in Busan Metropolitan City, a largest container handling port city in the ROK, to draw attention on the Blue Economy which is emerging as a new paradigm for sustainable and eco-friendly economy and at the same time, to support revitalization of the local economy which has gone through a difficult time due to COVID-19. The Seminar will be sponsored by the Busan Tourism Organization.

2. Through the forthcoming Seminar, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expects to create a momentum to substantially contribute to sustainable development of the Indian Ocean Region whose economic and strategic importance has been on the rise and by extension, to open the post-COVID-19 era together with the Indian Ocean Rim community.