25 August 2021 | UCLG ASPAC, in collaboration with Gyeonggi Provincial Government and Gyeonggi International Peace Center, and Korea Association of International Development and Cooperation (KAIDEC), invited local and regional governments for commitment towards peace through the Humanitarian-Development-Peace (HDP) Nexus Committee informational meeting. Around 52 participants from 15 members of UCLG ASPAC including 22 local governments in Korea, convened to have a better understanding of the joined effort towards sustainable humanitarian and peace development.
Through the meeting, participants were informed of the background, purpose, progress, and expected outcomes of HDP Nexus Committee establishment within UCLG ASPAC, which is led by Gyeonggi Province. Lectures were also given to provide an understanding of HDP Nexus.
In his opening remarks through a video message, Vice Governor for Peace, Gyeonggi Provincial Government, Mr. Jaegang LEE mentioned the initiative taken by Gyeonggi in promoting peacebuilding through international development cooperation. He expressed his expectation that the Committee becomes a place where local governments can voice their concerns and show actions on humanitarian and peace which can lead to economic and social development and peace settlement in the Asia-Pacific region.
UCLG ASPAC Secretary General, Dr. Bernadia I. Tjandradewi, mentioned that the UCLG ASPAC HDP Nexus committee was established for all members in the Asia-Pacific region. She put emphasis on the importance of the Committee’s Charter, which is the basis of reference for the governance of the Committee. She invited all participants to actively get involved in the draft formulation.
A lady professor from KAIDEC shared the HDP overview of the global community such as from UN, EU, Sweden, Canada, and Japan; the strategy/approaches; the programme; as well as implementation and application. She also presented the case in the1990s, where local governments’ role became a key agenda on building the new global partnership in Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation (GPEDC). The last speaker, Professor Gyea-soo, Jo (Hankuk University of Foreign Studies) through video message mentioned that local governments need to establish a network of local experts (such as experts in human rights and gender experts) and seek ways to share and utilise knowledge among local governments.
Mr. Young-sam Ma, a career diplomat who has served as ambassador to Denmark, Israel, and Head Representative to Palestine, led productive discussions of the Draft Charter and gathered diverse and valuable opinions for consideration. The Charter is going to be adopted during the launching of the HDP Nexus Committee in the 8th UCLG ASPAC Congress on 7 September 2021.
