The Ministry of Environment (Minister Han Wha-jin) plans to attend the G20* Environment and Climate Ministers' Meeting on July 28 in Chennai, India, to discuss key environmental issues such as climate change and biodiversity. The Ministry also plans to engage in activities supporting the bid to host the Busan Expo through bilateral talks.

* Republic of Korea, United States, European Union, China, Japan, Germany, United Kingdom, France, India, Italy, Brazil, Canada, Australia, Russia, Mexico, Indonesia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Republic of South Africa, Argentina

In addition to the key 20 countries, high-level officials from invited countries* and international organizations such as the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) will attend this meeting. From South Korea, Ahn Se-chang, Deputy-Director of the Climate Change andInternational Cooperation Bureau of the Ministry of Environment, will participate. 

* Spain, Netherlands, Singapore, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bangladesh, Egypt, etc.

This year, India, as the chairing country*, is preparing for the major G20 summit scheduled to be held in September under the theme of 'One Earth, One Family, One Future**'. Since February of this year, India has been hosting successive ministerial meetings on various agenda items.

* (Chairman countries of the G20) 2022 Indonesia, 2024 Brazil (planned), 2025 Republic of South Africa (planned) 

** This phrase means "respect for all living beings, including humans, animals, and plants, connected as one with the Earth, and the restoration of community," derived from ancient Sanskrit ures.

This meeting will be conducted in total of three sessions and five agenda items (Climate Action, Blue Economy, Resource Efficiency and Circular Economy, Halting Land Degradation, and Biodiversity). The Ministry will introduce domestic environmental policies while emphasizing close cooperation and joint efforts of the international community, in connection with national statements on the five areas in the first and second sessions. 

In the Climate Action agenda item, the Ministry will reaffirm our continuous efforts to prevent a temperature rise of 1.5℃, urge the reevaluation and implementation of national greenhouse gas reduction targets, and emphasize the need for progress in adaptation measures. In addition, it will urge the establishment of a concrete funding mechanism for loss and damage, and the full operation of the Santiago Network. The Ministry will also emphasize the importance of global implementation and compliance checks.

In particular, the Ministry will introduce our achievement of a 3.5% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to the previous year, despite a 2.6% increase in gross domestic product (GDP)*, with an estimated national greenhouse gas emission of 654.5 million tons for the year 2022. 

* 2022 Real Gross Domestic Product: KRW 1,968.8 trillion

* 2021 Real Gross Domestic Product: KRW 1,918.7 trillion (Bank of Korea)

Furthermore, the Ministry plans to share South Korea's adaptation policies and methods with the international community, including information on the Climate Adaptation Week event jointly organized by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), which will be held in Songdo, Incheon from August 28 to September 1 this year.

In the Blue Economy agenda item, the Ministry welcomes the adoption of the "Agreement on the Conservation of Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ)* and Sustainable Use" and call for the active participation of the key 20 countries in negotiations for an international agreement on plastic waste. In particular, Korea plans to contribute to the conclusion of the Plastic Agreement** scheduled for 2025 by hosting the 5thIntergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5) meeting in December 2024.

* (BBNJ) Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction

**(Background of the Agreement) From February 28 to March 2, at the 5.2nd session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA 5.2) held in Nairobi, Kenya, a resolution was adopted to promote the development of a legally binding international agreement on plastic pollution response.

The fields of resource efficiency and circular economy are core subjects that aim to promote resource efficiency and circularity throughout the entire product lifecycle, including production, distribution, consumption, and recycling. Korea's 'Circular Economy Society Transition Promotion Act' is introduced to the international community.

In the field of halting land degradation, the Ministry acknowledges the importance of restoring areas affected by wildfires and mining in India, as the presiding country. Itcommits to participating in efforts to expand REDD+* activities and strengthen financial support for the LEAF** coalition, aiming to increase greenhouse gas absorption sources to reduce global forest loss and land degradation by 2030.

* Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation Plus: Activities to prevent deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries, enhance the carbon absorption capacity of forests, and reduce carbon emissions

**Lowering Emissions by Accelerating Forest Finance: An international coalition formed by both public and private sectors to support activities aimed at preventing deforestation in tropical and subtropical forests by collectively raising funds

In the field of biodiversity, the Ministry welcomes the commitment of twenty major countries to implement the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), adopted at the 15th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity. Italso introduces South Korea's upcoming '5th National Biodiversity Strategy (2024-2028),' scheduled to be established by the end of this year.

The 20 key countries participating in this meeting plan to formalize the outcomes of the discussions on five core issues, including climate action, into ministerial declarations or chair's summary*format.

* In the event that member countries of the 4th G20 Environment and Climate Working Group negotiations (July 26-27, 2023) fail to reach an agreement on the Ministerial Declaration, the chairing country will announce a summary statement instead.

The Ministry plans to promote Korea's environmental policies through high-level meetings with organizations such as the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the European Union, and Turkey. Additionally, the Ministry will engage in in-depth discussions on environmental cooperation measures and global environmental and climate issues. Furthermore, the Ministry will urge support for attracting the Busan Expo.

In particular, during the meeting with the European Commission, the Ministry plans to request that the opinions of the Korean government and industries regarding the draft legislation of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), recently announced by the European Union, be taken into account in the implementation law.

Contact: Lee Suni, Deputy Director

International Cooperation Division / +82-(0)44-201-6564