13 Chief Directors to attend programme in Korea
The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) has sponsored 13 chief directors from various ministries and departments in the country to participate in its High-Level Strategy for Development Cooperation programme in Korea.
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At a pre-departure orientation and dinner in Accra last Monday, Korea’s Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Sungsoo Kim, said the programme was part of Korea’s commitment to strengthen its ties with Ghana.
According to him, the programme had so far given the opportunity to 25 selected chief directors in 2015 and 2016 to learn the development mode adopted by Korea over the past decades.
Initiatives in Ghana
Mr Kim said Korea was interested in the human resource capacity development of Ghana.
“KOICA promotes this interest by ensuring, at least, 100 officials gain the opportunity to attend fellowship programmes in Korea every year for capacity building and knowledge sharing.”
He added that in furtherance of strengthening the trade relations between the two countries, and to enable Korea to evolve new strategies, the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) was established in 2011 in Ghana to undertake promotion of trade investment in Ghana.
Mr Kim further stated that there was also the Korean National Institute for International Education (NIIED) which runs the Global Korea Scholarship Programme (GKSP), through which 10 Ghanaian students were sponsored to Korea for undergraduate, doctorate and master’s degree programmes every year.
As part of building a stronger relationship with Ghana, the Ambassador said a framework agreement was signed between the two countries for a concessional loan of $200 million.
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KOICA scholarships
The Country Director for KOICA, Mr Yukyum Kim, said 722 government officials had benefited from KOICA’s fellowship programmes of which 158 received Korean master’s scholarship.
This year alone, he said, 25 government officials were awarded KOICA scholarships to study in diverse programmes, including Fisheries Science, Atmospheric Environment, Global ICT policy, Agricultural Engineering, Water Resources Management, Public Administration, Energy Policy and Global Health Policy.
Mr Kim further stated that KOICA had undertaken various projects such as the Dawhenya Integrated Rural Development Project, Female Professionals in Electronics, Rehabilitation of ATTC, and construction of Infectious Disease Treatment Centre at Tamale.
He added that KOICA was supporting five other projects in the health, energy, agriculture and the educational sectors this year.