Seoul 10th largest trade partner with Amman, looks to further cooperation

AMMAN — Almost one year into his tenure, Korean Ambassador to Jordan Choi Hong-ghi said his country, the 10th largest trading partner with the Kingdom, will not spare any effort to build on strategic ties with Jordan, which is “very appealing and open to foreigners”.

Seoul, which established diplomatic ties with Amman in 1962, is committed to supporting the Kingdom in key sectors of water, education and health, among others, the ambassador said in a recent interview with The Jordan Times.

He highlighted religious tourism — attracting more South Korean tourists for Christian pilgrimage in Jordan —  and renewable energy as key fields with potential for further collaboration.

Since 1991, South Korea has extended $240 million in loans and grants to Jordan — through its Economic Development Cooperation Fund and the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) — to support several projects in the water, education, health, human resources development and energy sectors, according to the diplomat.

This year, KOICA will start building a $5.2 million school for deaf students and implementing an $8.5 million e-procurement system that will help facilitate the bidding process and enhance transparency, he said.

In addition, KOICA will build three new healthcare centres across the Kingdom at a total cost of $4.2 million.

“The projects that we will start in 2014 will take three to four years till completion.”

South Korea, which has been sending volunteers to help in different fields, is planning to send 10 more to Jordan before the end of this year, increasing to 32 the number of volunteers present in the country, Choi said.

Around 700 South Koreans currently reside in Jordan, he added.

Around 19,000 South Koreans visited Jordan in 2013 compared to 18,000 in 2012, according to the envoy.

“We are seeing large numbers of South Koreans coming to Jordan this year and in the first quarter some 7,000 South Korean tourists visited Jordan,” he said.

“Jordan is very attractive to tourists with its historical sites such as the Dead Sea, Petra, Wadi Rum and Jerash,” Choi added.

“There is great potential for religious Christian pilgrimages for South Korean tourists.”

South Korean companies, he added, are interested in working in the renewable energy sector, which holds much potential for cooperation, in addition to ICT.

Korean technology giants LG and Samsung have already opened research and development centres in Jordan to help in the transfer of their know-how in the ICT field and to exchange expertise and enhance the skills of Jordanians, Choi said.

Seoul is also involved in helping ease the burden on Jordan as it continues to host a large number of Syrian refugees.

South Korea has already extended some $6.5 million in aid to Syrian refugees in Jordan and provided some 1,600 trailers to the Zaatari Refugee Camp last year.

Turning to the trade volume, Choi said it witnessed a slight drop in 2013, but is expected to pick up and grow significantly in 2014.

Trade exchange between Jordan and South Korea amounted to $570 million in 2013 compared to $592 million in 2012, he said, citing official Jordanian figures.

But according to South Korean customs’ statistics, trade exchange stood at $1.4 billion in 2013 compared with $1.5 billion in 2012, he noted.

“The reason is that many Jordanian traders import auto parts to Jordan and re-export them to neighbouring markets such as Iraq. These re-exported items are not usually calculated locally,” the diplomat explained. 

Some 80 per cent of Jordan’s imports from South Korea are automobiles and auto parts as well as electronics. 

Choi reiterated his keenness to expand cooperation with Jordan: “I am impressed with three things in Jordan: the nice weather of the country, the hospitality of its people and openness to foreigners, and the remarkable stability in the country.”