UNICEF deepens partnerships with the Republic of Korea to address global challenges
Deputy Executive Director visits the Republic of Korea
UNICEF's Deputy Executive Director, Ms. Kitty van der Heijden, engaged in strategic discussions with key government counterparts from the Republic of Korea, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), and the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly. She also met with the Green Climate Fund (GCF) to reinforce UNICEF’s global commitment to tackle the climate crisis and its impact on children.
In her meeting with Mr. Kweon Ki-hwan, Deputy Minister for Multilateral and Global Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ms. van der Heijden reinforced the strategic importance of the UNICEF/Korea partnership. The alignment between Korea’s ODA priorities and UNICEF’s Strategic Plan priorities will impact the lives of millions of children in the coming years. They also discussed Korea’s humanitarian support to UNICEF and the importance of the multilateral system, including organizations like UNICEF, to delivering Korea’s ODA objectives.
Ms. van der Heijden’s meeting with Ms. Hyoeun (Jenny) Kim, Ambassador and Deputy Minister for Climate Change, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, focused on strengthening UNICEF’s Climate collaboration with the Korean Government. They discussed UNICEF’s Sustainability and Climate Change Action Plan and the importance of prioritizing children’s needs and rights in government Climate policies.
The meeting with Mr. Lee Yun Young, Vice President of KOICA, focused on a new strategic Climate partnership, which will enable millions of children across Asia and Africa to access climate-smart social services, including health, education, nutrition, water, and protection services. Ms. van der Heijden and Vice President Lee also discussed future areas of collaboration, including providing youth with green skills, Digital Transformation, HDP Nexus, and Public-Private Partnerships.
At the National Assembly, Ms. van der Heijden met with the Deputy Speaker, Hon. Kim Young-joo. The importance of UNICEF’s work in Korea and abroad was discussed, including the Deputy Speaker’s long-standing commitment to the rights of all children. The Deputy Speaker welcomed the opportunity to strengthen relations with UNICEF and to jointly improving the lives of children in poverty. They agreed that priority issues for UNICEF to tackle in the future will include climate change, nutrition and food issues, and humanitarian causes.
The meeting with the Green Climate Fund (GCF) highlighted the urgency of scaling up climate action in the most fragile contexts and to finding creative solutions for addressing the impact of the climate crisis on children. Ms. van der Heijden and her GCF counterpart, Deputy Executive Director Henry Gonzales, agreed to strengthen the strategic collaboration between our two organizations, including providing basic social services that are more climate-resilient and accessible to all children.
UNICEF Deputy Executive Director van der Heijden’s visit to Seoul underscored UNICEF’s commitment to forging ever-stronger alliances with our key partners. The commitments made during this visit will have a lasting impact, paving the way for meaningful and sustained progress in addressing some of the most pressing challenges facing children today.
UNICEF extends its heartfelt thanks to the Government of the Republic of Korea for their partnership and looks forward to our collaboration creating a better world for every child.
UNICEF Executive Director of Partnerships made her first official visit to Korea from 23-24 November 2023.
