Ham Sang-wook, deputy foreign minister for multilateral affairs, met senior officials of the Republic of the Congo to discuss bilateral ties and economic cooperation during his trip there this week, the foreign ministry said Friday.

On Wednesday, Ham paid courtesy calls on Foreign Minister Jean-Claude Gakosso and Denis Christel Sassou Nguesso, the minister of international cooperation and promotion of public-private partnership.

Ham's trip to the capital city of Brazzaville was designed to deepen economic and other cooperation with the African country, as Seoul plans to host the Korea-Africa forum in December. The ministerial forum was launched in 2006 to strengthen the partnership with Africa.

During his meeting with Gakosso, Ham called for Congo's active participation in the planned forum. The minister accepted the invitation, saying the forum is a crucial foundation for enhancing relations between South Korea and Africa, the ministry said.

During his meeting with Sassou Nguesso, Ham expressed expectation that the two countries can expand their cooperation in various areas.

The minister explained his country's focus on agriculture, education, tourism, infrastructure and other areas, and called for consultations on concrete ways to cooperate on South Korean businesses' participation in these areas.

It is the first visit to the country by a senior South Korean official since 2013.

This week, Ham also visited the Democratic Republic of the Congo and paid courtesy calls on President Felix Tshisekedi and Foreign Minister Christophe Lutundula Apala Pen'Apala. (Yonhap)