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Export-Import Bank of Korea Chairman and President Hwang Ki-yeon, left, poses for a photo with Botswana Vice President Ndaba Nkosinathi Gaolathe at the 8th Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation Ministerial Conference in Seoul on Sept. 10. / Export-Import Bank of Korea

The Export-Import Bank of Korea is stepping up financial cooperation with major African countries on the occasion of the 8th Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation, or KOAFEC, Ministerial Conference.

The bank said on Sept. 11 that it held a series of bilateral meetings on Sept. 9 and 10 with senior officials from 10 African countries, including the vice president of Botswana and representatives from Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, Ghana, Egypt, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Lesotho and Sierra Leone.

During the meetings, the two sides shared each country’s key development needs and discussed ways to expand economic cooperation through the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF), as well as measures to support South Korean companies seeking to enter African markets.

In particular, the bank discussed follow-up cooperation on the Tanzania AI and Digital Technology Training Institute Project, which was approved in August as the EDCF’s first artificial intelligence-related project. The talks covered steps needed to ensure the smooth implementation of subsequent procedures, including the signing of a loan agreement.

The bank also held an investment briefing on Sept. 10 to help South Korean companies identify business and investment opportunities in Africa. Officials from the African Development Bank, the governments of Kenya and Tanzania, and representatives involved in Ghanaian investment projects participated in the event and shared promising projects and investment opportunities with South Korean companies.

South Korean AI semiconductor companies FuriosaAI and Rebellions also took part in the briefing to assess the direction of AI and digital transformation initiatives in major African countries and identify related investment demand.

The Export-Import Bank of Korea plans to continue linking financial diplomacy with developing-country governments to overseas expansion by South Korean companies. It also plans to broaden economic cooperation with Africa through a range of financing tools, including export and investment financing.

“Through this KOAFEC meeting, economic cooperation with Africa has expanded further into areas of high strategic importance to the Korean government, including AI and digital technology, culture and supply chains,” said Hwang Ki-yeon, Chairman and President of the Export-Import Bank of Korea.

“Our role is to turn government-to-government cooperation into concrete projects and then connect those projects to overseas business opportunities for Korean companies,” Hwang said.

                                                                                                              Park Seo-a