Asian ministers gather in Seoul to discuss cooperation before the AFoCO inauguration


A two-day special meeting of forestry ministers from Korea and member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, will kick off in Seoul on Wednesday.

The conference is aimed at discussing concrete measures among ministers to promote cooperation on forestation and enhance green growth in Asia, Seoul officials said.

The Special ASEAN-Korea Ministerial Meeting will take place to commemorate the inauguration of the Asian Forest Cooperation Organization, or AFoCO, slated for early next month.

AFoCo will be the first international organization of its kind to be set up in Asia. The organization will be established in Seoul to help fight deforestation and climate change, Korea Forest Service Minister Lee Don-koo said. 

The Korean government took the initiative in creating AFoCO as part of its global commitment to low-carbon green growth. President Lee Myung-bak proposed the idea during the ASEAN-Korea Commemorative Summit on Jeju Island in June 2009. The ASEAN-Korea Summit in Indonesia in November 2011 gave official approval to AFoCO.

During the two-day special session, about 100 participants are expected to discuss ways to operate AFoCo and pledge to implement the agreement on forestry cooperation.

The participants include the ministers from Korea and 10 ASEAN member countries which include Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Brunei, Myanmar, the Philippines and Laos.

In addition, the participants will exchange views on how to reinforce forestry management and how to share Korea’s forestation technology, Seoul officials said.

On the last day of the session, the participants are expected to adopt a special declaration by Korean and ASEAN ministers, which will focus on strengthening cooperation and facilitating low-carbon and green growth technologies, the officials said.

On the eve of the special conference, members of a governing council to implement the agreement on Korea-ASEAN forestry cooperation met in Seoul to appoint a new secretary-general of AFoCo and to form the organization’s secretariat.

AFoCO, with 11 member countries will be further expanded into an international organization to include other northeast and central Asian countries, the Korea Forest Service said in a press release.

Through AFoCO, Korea will help prevent deforestation in Southeast Asian countries while also offering its technology and fund to help make new woodland there. Korea will shoulder 90 percent of funds and expenses of AFoCO, according to the KFS.

“Through AFoCO, Korea seeks to offer its afforestation technologies, along with various personnel and technological support, to ASEAN countries that are suffering from serious forest denudation,” Lee said in a meeting with reporters on Monday.

“The country will also bolster its forest diplomacy, starting with the Korea-ASEAN forest ministers’ meeting.” Lee said.

By Lee Kwon-hyung (kwonh@heraldcorp.com)