South Korea Donates IT Equipment to Foreign Service Academy
The Republic of South Korea has supported the Foreign Service Academy of Sierra Leone with modern IT equipment worth Two Hundred Thousand United States dollars.
The donated items include laptop and desktop computers, cameras and accessories, and HD TV screens.
Presenting the items, Ambassador Kim Young Chae South Korea’s Ambassador to Sierra Leone, said it was the first time such a high-powered delegation from South Korea was visiting Sierra Leone, which he said was a demonstration of strong bilateral relations between the two countries.
Ambassador Chae said that South Korea will open an embassy in Sierra Leone in 2024 to show the country’s deepening bilateral relations with Sierra Leone and to also support the development trajectory of the Government of Sierra Leone.
Earlier, the delegation met with His Excellency, President Julius Maada Bio at the State House. Head of the delegation and South Korea’s Minister of Agriculture H.E Chung Hwang Keun said their engagement was fruitful and promising; noting that both countries can collectively work together in the interest of their people as they take their non-permanent seats in the United Nations Security Council for the 2024-2025 period.
- E Chung Hwang Keun said the meeting with President Bio led to the signing of a Memorandum of Understating between the two countries which is in line with the K Rice Belt project.
The MOU was signed at a time when Sierra Leone is implementing the ‘Feed Salone’ program which was launched by President Bio.
Sierra Leone’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Timothy M. Kabba welcomed the donation and said it extended the relation beyond diplomatic ties.
Minister Kabba said South Korea has a lot to share with Sierra Leone when it comes to Human Capital Development because South Korea used human capital development to grow its economy.
Kabba said that a country’s growth is not determined by the amount of natural resources it has but the strength of its human capital. That, he said, was the reason why President Bio is building a strong educational pillar for generations yet unborn.
Minister Kabba said both Sierra Leone and South Korea exist in regions with security challenges but together in the UN Security Council, they could collectively work to foster peace and security.
The Acting Director of the Foreign Service Academy, Ambassador Sullay Daramy thanked the Government of South Korea for boosting the institution with the much-needed facilities that will be utilized judiciously to provide diplomatic training and to make the FSA a center of excellence within the sub-region.
The Foreign Service Academy was commissioned by His Excellency President Dr. Julius Maada Bio in January this year to build the capacity of the country’s diplomats and other nationals through diplomatic training.
