May 2012: The Republic of Korea (ROK) and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to institutionalize and strengthen mutual cooperation on economic, social and environmental issues, including green growth. The MOU was signed on 25 May 2012, at ECLAC headquarters in Santiago, Chile, by ECLAC Executive Alicia Bárcena and ROK’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Kim Sung-Hwan.

Under the terms of the MOU, cooperation will include capacity development and information exchange through regular bilateral meetings, joint research, exchanges of experts, researchers and interns, as well as workshops, seminars and conferences. The MOU establishes the first institutional base for bilateral cooperation since the ROK joined ECLAC in 2007, and Kim stressed that the ROK intends it to be a step toward closer long-term cooperation between the country and the Latin American and Caribbean region (LAC).

At the signing, Kim said green growth would be the main focus of the ROK’s cooperation with ECLAC and the region. He noted that the official launch of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) would take place at the upcoming UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20), of which ROK serves as co-chair.

The ROK and ECLAC also agreed to work together to consolidate the role of the Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation (FEALAC) as a central vehicle for cooperation between LAC and Asia. [ECLAC Press Release]