Beyond K-Pop and KDramas, Korea is shaping global development by building strong ties with Africa. Over the years, Korea has worked alongside several African countries to offer a lending hand is various sectors including health. Below are some of the projects highlighting the growing partnership rooted in shared progress and long-term resilience.
1. Big-picture Pledges
At the inaugural Korea–Africa Summit (June 2024) in Seoul, Korea committed to expand ODA (Official Development Assistance) to US$10 billion by 2030 and mobilize US$14 billion in export financing to unlock trade, infrastructure, energy, health, and digital projects with African partners. This is being channeled through KOICA (Korea International Cooperation Agency) grants, the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) concessional loans via KEXIM bank, and partnerships with the AU (African Union), Africa CDC (Centre for Disease Control), and multilaterals.
2. Water, Sanitation & Climate Resilience
In May 2024, UNICEF and KOICA signed a US$39 million program to deliver climate-smart health, WASH (Water Hygiene and Sanitation), education, child protection, and social protection services on various African countries. KOICA has also funded multi-phase water production and supply upgrades in Kenya, including a partnership with UNICEF to scale up WASH resilience initiatives.
3. Power & Infrastructure
In 2023, the AfDB and Korea Exim bank (EDCF) aligned on a US$119 million transmission project supporting Kenya’s geothermal renewables integration. Korea’s Ministry of Economy and Finance has been deepening EDCF cooperation with 21 African countries since 2024 for more effectiveness. Uganda and Tanzania have also benefited in infrastructure boost, including Uganda’s 2024 $500 million EDCF agreement.
4. Education
Korea also has a track record of public governance policy dialogues and workshops with East African governments, sharing e-government and public sector modernization lessons. GKS (Global Korea Scholarship) and KOICA CIAT fellowship program (government officials’ scholarships) are some of the most impactful undergraduate, master’s and PhD scholarships. KOICA regularly supports scholarships, technical training, and short-course exchanges. Through the Smart Education Project, KOICA has established over 21 smart schools across Nigeria as of August 2025, transforming teaching through digital platforms. Before Nigeria, KOICA had also undertaken an education initiative in Zanzibar, Tanzania that also included a teacher-training program.
5. Health Systems & Disease Security
In 2024, Uganda’s ministry of health and WHO launched a KOICA-funded program to refurbish 28 health facilities in Busoga, improving service delivery and equipment readiness. Since 2004, Korea Foundation for International Healthcare (KOFIH) has also been running multi-year projects on various African countries including Ghana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Zimbabwe, etc. The projects strengthen health insurance policy, medical equipment governance, and TB screening and diagnostics, including the 2022–2026 KRW 8.15 billion governance project. Through 2024, KOFIH’s Dr. Lee Jong Wook Fellowship offered local trainings to build in-country capacity for biomed engineers. During the 2024 Summit, Africa CDC, Korea’s KDCA (Korea Disease Control & Prevention Agency) and the International Vaccine Institute agreed to deepen cooperation on vaccines and health security across Africa.
—-Karen Mwenda
#BeyondKPop #KoreasGrowingPartnershipwithAfrica #AfricaandKorea #KOICA #kcrush #KOFIH #Ugandasministry #WHO #Ethiopia #Kenya #Zimbabwe #health #KDCA #ODA #kcrushamerica #kcrushmagazine #partnershipwithAfrica #EDCF #kpop #kdrama #KEXIM #AU #CDC #Education #smartschools #WASH #power #infastructure #GlobalKoreaScholarship #CIAT
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