Georgetown, Guyana, June 25, 2023 – As a follow up to the first scoping mission to Guyana in March 2023, a Korean delegation visited Guyana for a two-day mission, where several important meetings, engagements and interactions were facilitated. The high-level Korean delegation included officials from the Korean Forest Service and private sector representatives.
The objective of the visit was to discuss areas of cooperation between Guyana and Korea. The visit included meeting with high-level officials to better understand the country development context, needs and opportunities for cooperation and strengthen relationships in area of forestry.
The Korean delegation was led by Dr. Bae Jae soo (President of the National Institute of Forest Science) and other senior officials from the Korean Forest Service such as Ms. Kim Jina (Director of the International Cooperation Division), Mr. Min Byeongsan, (Deputy Director, International Cooperation Division), Ms. Ju Youngran (Assistant Director, International Cooperation Division), Mr. Yang Hwajin (Programme Officer, National Institute of Forest Science), Mr. Hong Seong Hoa (Former Ambassador to Mexico), Mr. Yoo Hee suk (Vice President, SK Forest Co.), Ms. Lee Sookyoung (Team Leader, SK Forest Co.) and Mr. Maeng Churl kyu (Senior Manager, Global Infrastructure Business & Marketing Team, Hyundai Engineering Co.).
The visiting delegation held discussions with officials from the Ministry of Agriculture lead by the Permanent Secretary Ms. Delma Nedd and explored opportunities for cooperation and collaboration in reforestation of mangroves, and exchange of technology and capacity.
Understanding the importance of coastal defense against rising sea level, especially for vulnerable countries such as Guyana, the KFS expressed interest in supporting the Government in its efforts to safeguard against this impact of climate change.
Resulting from discussions in earlier visits, the Government of Guyana with support from the GGGI submitted a concept note to the KFS for possible funding of a mangrove project. This proposed project aimed at creating an enabling environment that will foster the natural reforestation of mangroves. During the visit, there was a further discussion on this proposal. After the discussion, representatives of both teams visited the proposed project sites to have a firsthand look at the area of intervention proposed.
Additionally, the team visited another reforested site where a different type of intervention was made, that has resulted in the natural reforestation of mangroves. In this site, over a 2-year period after the intervention the depth of mangroves has increased from 50 to 300 meters from the coast. The visit to this site was to illustrate the success of interventions and to show firsthand that these interventions are successful.
The delegation also met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs in Guyana to discuss cooperation between the two countries and the various agencies. Among the discussion was soliciting Guyana’s support for the World Expo 2030 Busan which if successful intends to focus on three areas: 1) climate change; 2) downsides of the digital transformation; and 3) inequality among and within nations.
The team also met with senior officials from the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) and the Department of Environment and Climate Change (DECC), to discuss further collaboration in reforestation, training, and economics. Representatives includes Ms. Vaness Benn (GFC Chair), Mr. Edward Goberdhan (Commissioner of the GFC), other officers of GFC, and Mr. Nikolaus Oudkerk (DECC).
The country’s National MRV system, REDD+ and Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy 2030 were featured during the discussion. Further discussion focused on carbon trade, national policies, and knowledge exchange programs between the two countries.
The meeting was facilitated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Guyana, supported by the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), and hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture and the Guyana Forestry Commission.
At the end of the visit, commitments were made by the KFS to invite technical officers from Guyana to attend summer training in Korea in the form of knowledge exchange in REDD+ and MRV and hope to invite Guyana to participate in the 50-year anniversary of reforestation program KFS will be hosting later this year. The possible funding opportunity for mangrove reforestation was advanced with technology and capacity exchange included, with a formal response expected later this year. The Government of Guyana also committed to inviting participants to the various conference and providing the Government of Korea an opportunity to send officials to attend these events. Both countries are interested in strengthening ties and collaboration.