RoK Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Cho Seung-Hwan (Photo: VNA)In an interview granted to Vietnam News Agency, the official said that Vietnam is one of the major aquaticproduct suppliers to his country, accounting for 13% of the RoK’s total importvalue of the product.
As of the end of 2021, RoK imported about 800 million USDworth of aquatic products from Vietnam, mostly shrimp and shrimp meat, and octopus,he said, noting that Vietnam is the fourth largest exporter of aquatic productsin the world after China, Japan and the US.
Despite concerns about the economic downturn, the demand forimported seafood is expected to continue to increase in line with the risingdemand in the world. Besides, the RoK has continued to open its door for food products,he said.
Aquatic imports of the RoK rose from 4.56 billion USD in 2015 to 52.6 billionUSD in 2017 and 61.8 billion USD in 2021, said Cho, stressing that the Koreanpeople have the highest average consumption of aquatic products in the world, with68.4kg per person in 2020.
The minister also highlighted the RoK’s strengths in aquaculture as well as its application of high technology in the industry.
He said that since the beginning of this year, the RoK hasimplemented a project to enhance the productivity for the aquaculture sector innorthern localities of Vietnam, with total cost for the 2022-2026 periodreaching about 3.4 million USD.
The project aims to promote research and technical cooperationto improve the productivity of crustacean farming in the northern waters ofVietnam associated with mangrove regeneration. It also focuses on thestrengthening of personnel training and technology transfer to ensure thestability of business activities.
Cho expressed his hope that the two sides will continue to promotetheir collaboration in sustainable aquaculture through cooperation indeveloping smart and environmentally friendly aquaculture technology withVietnam in the future.
He also said that his ministry has carried out a number of cooperation projects with Vietnam tostrengthen maritime and fisheries capacity, using Korean ODA. The two sides havealso enjoyed fruitful cooperation in maritime safety policy consultation andseaport development.
The two countries also work closely in the field of marine engineer trainingsince 2020. Minister Cho said he hopes that with the development of the constructiontechnology, Korean companies will have the opportunity to participate inseaport development projects in Vietnam.
The two countries can also work together to respond toglobal issues such as climate change, marine pollution settlement and theprotection of aquatic resources, he stated./.
VNA
