Vice Presidents and Minister-level officials from eleven Latin American countries, including Costa Rican President Alfio Piva, Colombia's Minister of Mines and Energy Carlos Rodado, and Vice President of Chile's Foreign Investment Committee Matias Mori, will visit Korea for the 2011 High-Level Forum on Korea-LAC (Latin America and Caribbean) Partnership to be held in Seoul May 18-19.
The Forum has been held annually since 2008, co-hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs, the Ministry of Environment, and the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, with the aim of enhancing understanding on state-run projects between Korea and Latin America and helping Korean enterprises explore potential projects in Latin America.
The participating Vice Presidents and Ministers will explain in person promising state-run projects of their countries in relevant sessions and discuss with the Korean panelists ways to boost substantive cooperation. In addition, the participants will hold separate business meetings with high-ranking officials of relevant government agencies and businesses of Korea interested in entering the Latin American market for in-depth discussions on specific projects.
At the opening ceremony of the Forum on May 18, Minister for Trade Kim Jong-hoon will deliver an opening speech, followed by a congratulatory address by Costa Rican President Alfio Piva. The Forum will proceed with three sessions: trade and investment, resources and energy, and green growth. On the second day (May 19), a session will be held on infrastructure and plant. Each of the sessions will consist of a presentation on the topic, followed by a discussion among the participants.
Latin America is emerging as one of Korea's major trade and investment partners. And, Korea has been posting the second-largest trade surplus only after that with Asia. The region is drawing keen attention from Korean companies as a promising investment destination, thanks to its rich resources and stable economic growth in recent years.
Latin American countries, on their part, are actively seeking to bolster cooperation with Asia to diversify their trade markets in line with their economic development. In this vein, the upcoming Forum is expected to serve as a good opportunity to make tangible progress in cooperation in helping Korean companies enter the Latin American market and win more orders in the sectors of trade and investment, resources, infrastructure, and green growth.
The 2011 Forum will take place at the Sapphire Ballroom on the third floor of Lotte Hotel in downtown Seoul. Detailed information is available at the Forum's official website (www.klacforum.org) or MOFAT's Latin American and Caribbean Cooperation Division (02-2100-8091).
