By King’s Office Correspondents
SEOUL, KOREA – There is a need to reopen embassies between Eswatini and the Republic of Korea.
The two heads of state exchanging ideas during the meeting where they were joined by their technical teams. His Majesty was joined by Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Pholile Shakantu, High Commissioner to Malaysia Menzi Dlamini and Private Secretary Mbongeni Simelane.
His Majesty the King expressed this sentiment during a bilateral meeting with South Korea’s President, Yoon Suk Yeol, yesterday. The king said reopening the embassies would help improve cooperation and strengthen relations between the two countries.
The king also expressed the wish to revive the medical team visits to Eswatini, saying he was one of the beneficiaries of the programme from which he obtained a personal doctor.
His Majesty shared some of the country’s capital projects, such as a strategic oil reserve and a desire to develop an oil refinery in the future. He asked the Korean government to contribute its expertise in this area.
Ambassador Mahlaba Mamba, PS Siboniso Nkambule, Minister Mancoba Khumalo and Protocol Officer Muzi Dlamini after welcoming back His Majesty.
The king reiterated his applause at the impressive economic turnaround of Korea from an undeveloped state to a developed country, saying such an experience was valuable to Eswatini, which had similar ambitions.
The king also emphasised the need for energy self-sufficiency, not only for Eswatini but also for the Southern Africa region, an area where the Korean business community could invest and supply the region, especially the SADC pool.
He congratulated the president for hosting the inaugural Korea-Africa summit, which he believes has opened the door for Korean business people to look for investment opportunities in Eswatini as a hub for doing business in the region, the continent at large, as well as other international markets through local trade agreements.
Minister of ICT Savannah Maziya, Minister of Foreign Affairs Pholile Shakantu with High Commissioner Menzi Dlamini and his spouse Bongile.
The President acknowledged the King’s requests, saying that the medical doctor outreach programme was still ongoing in other countries. He stated that the personnel consisted of retired doctors recruited from the Christian community and deployed to Africa.
The president also said his country would gladly share its expertise in oil refineries and strategic oil reserves, which he described as well advanced in Korea.
President Yeol also called upon Eswatini to take full advantage of the agriculture development programmes that Korea extends to Africa in order to realise food self-sufficiency.
He assured the king of the government’s commitment to cooperating with Eswatini in various areas of development for the mutual benefit of both countries.
The bilateral talks took place after the two-day Korea-African summit, which was well attended by leaders and representatives from 47 African countries.
