Suwon City and Suwon International Exchange Center's 'Eco-City' Project Selected for KOICA Proposal Program

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Seo Dong-young] Suwon City announced on the 6th that the 'eco-city development training project through public environmental education and transfer of waste and water resources management technology,' jointly conducted with the Suwon International Exchange Center Foundation, has been selected as a 2021 Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) government ministry proposal global training program.

The '2021 KOICA Government Ministry Proposal Program,' conducted by KOICA under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs targeting government ministries and local governments nationwide, is a program that shares accumulated experiences and technologies with developing countries to strengthen their capacity and support economic and social development.

From 2021 to 2023 over three years, the city plans to invite 18 public officials (six from each) from three regions that are sister cities with Suwon—Hai Duong Province in Vietnam, Bandung in Indonesia, and Siem Reap Province in Cambodia—and conduct training on the theme of 'eco-city development.'

The 'eco-city development training project' selected in the proposal aims to ▲share citizen education experiences related to eco-friendly cities with local government bodies in developing countries ▲support capacity building in waste and water resources management technology, contributing effectively to economic and social development ▲activate sister city network exchange by sharing experiences accumulated in Suwon's process of creating an ecological city.

The project plan and budget are scheduled to be officially confirmed in January 2021 after going through KOICA's grant aid project plan adjustment process.

"We hope this invitation training program will be helpful for the economic and industrial development of Suwon's sister cities," said Kim Byeong-ik, director of the Suwon International Exchange Center. "This will be an opportunity to elevate the international status of Suwon as an ecological and environmental city."

He added, "We will actively support sister city officials in enhancing their capacity by cooperating with environmental institutions in the city, including the Resource Recovery Facility and Resource Circulation Center."