Sejong, November 7 - The Ministry of Environment (ME, Minister Han Wha-jin) held the "Policy Consultation Forum of the Seoul Initiative Network on Green Growth (SINGG)," both in-person and online, on November 1 at the UN Conference Center in Bangkok, Thailand. The Policy Consultation Forum of the SINGG was hosted by the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Korea and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) with the theme "Accelerating Collaborative Efforts to Achieve Carbon Neutrality in Asia and the Pacific."  The Seoul Initiative Network on Green Growth (SINGG) was adopted at the fifth Ministerial Conference on Environment and Development in 2005. Since then, the policy forum participated by countries of Asia and the Pacific has been held annually and provided member states with a chance to cooperate in the environmental sector. 

This year's policy forum was attended by over 100 high-level government officials and experts from Asia and the Pacific countries, including Kaveh Zahedi, Deputy Executive Secretary of the UN ESCAP. The participants shared their strategies to realize carbon neutrality in their countries and best practices for carbon reduction. During the first session, Indonesia, New Zealand, Kazakhstan, and Thailand shared their plans and strategies to achieve carbon neutrality. During the second session, South Korea - Malaysia's carbon capture and storage project, Asian Development Bank's joint credit mechanism, Singapore's 2030 Green Plan and Carbon Tax, and the Maldives' Climate Emergency Act were introduced. 

Keum Han-seung, Deputy Minister for Climate Change and Carbon Neutral Policy, said, "The Asia-Pacific region is one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change. However, the region has to lead to resolving climate problems. Now is the time we need to pull our resources and efforts together to achieve carbon neutrality." He added, "Through the Asia-Pacific countries' cooperative network established through the SINGG, the Ministry of Environment of ROK will continuously support strengthening the regional capacity to deal with climate change." 

Contact: Kim Jong-ha, Assistant Deputy Director

International Cooperation Division / +82-(0)44-201-6568

Foreign Media Contact: Chun Minjo(Rachel)

+82-(0)44-201-6055 / rachelmchun@korea.kr