International Cooperation for Green Growth Vision of Korean Gov’t

On Nov. 25 this year, the Korean government announced it was enrolled in the Developing Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Korea is the first case of a developing country, which received economic assistance from the developed countries, to become a donor country after World War II. Therefore, Korea’s experience of development has been studied by many countries, international organizations and academic institutions.
It is a great achievement and a burden for Korea since the world is paying close attention. Developing countries want Korea to support their development financially and technologically. On the other hand, developed countries want Korea to contribute to the international community and to take on an important role in the area of development assistance as a member of the community of advanced nations. It could be an economic burden to Korea, but at the same time it could be a great opportunity for Korea because it could enhance Korea’s reputation and manufacturing value in the international arena.
In the field of environmental matters, Korea also has been requested to make a greater contribution to the international community and give more assistance to the developing countries’ efforts to overcome emerging environmental challenges. Korea has abundant experience in efficiently overcoming environmental problems since the beginning of the 1990s. Serious environmental problems were generated by the rapid industrial growth and urbanization during the three decades of industrialization since the 1960s. In the middle of the 1980s, living conditions were aggravated because of air and water pollution and excessive waste dumping contaminated land water. In the early 1990s, the Korean Government established a comprehensive investment plan for environmental infrastructure such as sewerage treatment facilities, water purification and supply systems, sanitary landfills and incinerators. Also, an adequate monitoring system for emissions of pollution and environmentally harmful activities in the industrial sector as well as local service and developments were established.
In the last 20 years, Korea has overcome the environmental problems so remarkably that many countries want to study Korea’s experiences. Now, Korea has entered the Green Growth Era after overcoming environmental issues. The concept of Green Growth is to pursue environmental conservation and development simultaneously, and to shift the national paradigm from a trade-off relationship to a win-win relationship between the environment and development. In August 2008, President Lee Myung-Bak proclaimed Green Growth as the national vision for the next 60 years. To follow up the determination immediately, the Korean government launched the Green New Deal early this year in order to implement the Green Growth Vision and stimulate an economic recovery from the global financial crisis. Now, many countries and international organizations are paying attention to the implementation of the Korean Green Growth Vision. For example, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) is studying Korea’s Green Growth Policy as an important case study for its ‘Green Economy Initiative,’ and the OECD Ministerial Meeting adopted a ‘Green Growth Declaration’ as the strategy for the member countries’ development as per the Korean government’s proposal. In the Asia-Pacific region, the Korean Government has implemented the Seoul Initiative on Green Growth Program in collaboration with ESCAP after the Fifth Asia-Pacific Environment and Development Ministerial Meeting was held in Seoul in 2005. The Seoul Initiative on Green Growth was adopted at the meeting as the main development policy direction for the member countries of ESCAP. In 2010, Kazakhstan will host the Sixth Ministerial Meeting. Recently, the ESCAP Committee on Environment and Development meeting recommended continuing the Green Growth Strategy after the Sixth Ministerial Meeting as a main policy direction in order to achieve the Millennium Development Goal, such as overcoming poverty and to respond to climate change.
At the DAC-EPOC High-level Official’s Meeting of the OECD in Paris in May 2009, many member countries highlighted the importance of environmental assistance for developing countries because it will balance economic development and environmental conservation. The Development Assistance Committee (DAC) and the Environment Policy Committee (EPOC) of the OECD jointly discussed integrating environmental conservation and climate change adaptation into development cooperation. The meeting recognized that many developing countries have been suffering from a shortage of drinking water and sanitary capacity, which have become more severe due to climate change. In the case of the East Asia Climate Change Partnership, established by the Korean Government, water management related projects such as sewerage facilities and treatment facilities also received priority in development assistance.
Next year, Korea hosts important international meetings on environmental issues such as the UNESCAP General Meeting in Incheon in May and the Business for Environment Summit Meeting (B4E) in Seoul in April. The UNESCAP General Meeting will discuss how green growth can be efficiently achieved in the Asia-Pacific Region. The B4E meeting, co-hosted by UNEP, the UN Global Compact, WWF and the Korean Ministry of Environment, is also going to discuss leading to a low carbon future in reflection of the outcomes of the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. These meetings are good examples of the recognition of the international community on the Korean Green Growth Vision and implementation policy.
As mentioned above, the Korean Green Growth Vision has attracted a lot of attention from the world. Therefore, there is a big demand for international cooperation in the field of environment and green growth from developing countries, advanced countries and international organizations. If we use this opportunity to enhance national brand value, we will achieve higher-level national development even though there might be some cost for cooperation. The Korean Ministry of Environment will continuously strengthen international cooperation efforts to lead Global Green Growth through bilateral and multilateral cooperation programs and international events. nw

Kim Yong-jin , Director of International Cooperation Office Korean Ministry of Environment