The Ministry of Environment (Minister Cho Myung-rae), in collaboration with the "UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP)"*, opens the "15th Policy Consultation Forum of the Seoul Initiative Network on Green Growth" under the theme of "Opportunities for Green Recovery from the COVID-19 - Green New Deal" on the afternoon of November 18.

* One of five regional cooperative economic committees directly under the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)

The forum will be held as an online video conference and more than 100 global experts including director level officials and related personnel from around 20 countries in the Asia-Pacific region, UNESCAP and Korea Environment Corporation (K-eco) will participate. The forum will be broadcast on the online website (www.unescap.org/event/SINGG).

The "Seoul Initiative Network" is a multilateral environmental cooperation project proposed and promoted by Korea to enhance green growth in the Asia-Pacific region at the "5th Ministerial Conference on Environment and Development in Asia and the Pacific" held in Seoul in 2005.

The "policy forum (open debate)" is the representative project of the Seoul Initiative Network. Every year, public officials and experts in the Asia-Pacific region review the implementation status of each country on environmental issues such as the sustainable development goal achievement and climate change responses. They also suggest the future direction for the countries.

The policy alternatives derived from the policy forum have been applied to 41 support projects in 18 countries including the "Sustainable Urban Infrastructure Construction in Kazakhstan: Green Building Project (2018)" through a joint pilot project with "UNESCAP".

This year's forum will discuss ways to enhance sustainable recovery and climate resilience in the Asia-Pacific region vulnerable to COVID-19. The forum will introduce the voices of future generation who are calling for climate change efforts.

Korea is planning to share the experience of the Green New Deal policy being pursued with the goal of 2050 carbon neutrality and explain the plan to continue promoting the Seoul Initiative Network Project* for green recovery in the Asia-Pacific region.

* The 76th UNESCAP General Assembly (2020.5) decided to extend the 4th stage of the Seoul Initiative Network (2021~2025)

"Green New Deal is our commitment to create a sustainable future from COVID-19 and the climate crisis," said Hwang Suk-tae, Deputy Minister of Living Environment Policy Office at the Ministry of Environment. "We will continue to support the efforts of the international community so that Korea's Green New Deal can contribute to the green recovery of neighboring countries."