UN food organization to open office in Seoul

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) will open an office in Seoul this week as Korea vows to play a greater role in global food-related projects, the Seoul government said Sunday.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said Agriculture Minister Lee Gae-ho and Jose Graziano da Silva, the head of the FAO, will attend an opening ceremony for the office on Monday.

The office will center on rolling out joint projects on coping with poverty and food security issues, along with sharing agricultural know-how with developing countries, the ministry said.

“The ministry and the FAO started discussing opening the offices in 2013,” Lee said in a press release. “The two sides will strengthen cooperation so that the shared expertise and leadership can contribute to global food security.”

The Seoul office will officially begin operations during the latter half of this year after completing preparation work, such as the hiring of staff, the ministry said.

Yonhap