Dinara Kemelova, the special representative of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic, visited South Korea to promote initiatives for sustainable development of mountain areas, enhance international cooperation, and combat climate change in the context of the global mountain agenda.
According to information from the presidential administration, during the visit, Kemelova held constructive meetings with several high-ranking officials, including Park Jong-ho, Executive Director of the Asian Forest Cooperation Organization (AFOCO), and Kim Sang-hyup, Executive Director of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI). They discussed projects aimed at developing the mountain regions of Kyrgyzstan within the framework of the Mountain Regions Development Action Decade (2023–2027).
Dinara Kemelova also met with Kyun Jong-ho, Ambassador and Deputy Minister for Climate Change at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea, and Nam Song-hee, Director General of the International Cooperation Bureau of the Korea Forest Service.
The special representative noted that the Kyrgyz Republic has made significant progress on the interconnection of mountains and climate at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) level. An international dialogue on these issues is planned for 2026. Additionally, she presented ideas for establishing a Global Center for Mountain Region Resilience in Bishkek and a Global Program for Mountain Country Development, suggesting that the Republic of Korea consider the possibility of partnership.
During the discussions, projects for restoring forest ecosystems, preventing natural disasters in mountainous areas, combating land degradation and climate change, as well as branding products from mountain regions and strengthening the institutional capacity of mountain countries were also considered.
Furthermore, Dinara Kemelova participated in a round table on "Promoting Global and Regional Mountain Dialogue: Towards the Second Global Mountain Summit 'Bishkek+25'." The event was organized jointly with the Secretariat of the Central Asia-Korea Cooperation Forum and gathered representatives from government agencies, Korean companies, and international organizations, including AFOCO, GGGI, and UNESCO. The mountain agenda was also presented at the Center for Eurasian and Central Asian Studies at Seoul National University during the visit.
