By Kweon Ki-hwan

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for Multilateral and Global Affairs

This year, some four billion people, more than a half of the world's population, are expected to go to polling stations. Over 50 countries including Korea have or are preparing to hold elections, the "flower of democracy." Thus 2024 is seeing the festival of democracy being held around the globe.

The state of global democracy, however, is frankly not optimistic. The Democracy Index report of the Economist Intelligence Unit, the research and analysis think tank of the British magazine Economist, said the annual index, which offers a snapshot of democracy in 167 countries late last year, saw an average score for democratic development of 5.23 out of 10. The figure was the lowest since 2006. Worse, new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) pose another threat to rule by the people. For this reason, many countries are worried over the negative impact of false or misleading information triggered by deepfakes on elections and democracy. 

At this critical juncture for the advancement of global democracy, the Korean government from March 18-20 will host the third Summit for Democracy in Seoul for heads of state, international organizations, civic groups and experts from around the world. Launched in 2021 under the lead of the U.S., the summit has seen Korea's aggressive participation to contribute to the international community's efforts to boost democracy.

While hosting the second summit last year, Korea held a regional meeting of the Indo-Pacific and will host this year's summit under the theme "Democracy for Future Generations." The first day will begin with an in-person ministerial conference and multi-stakeholder roundtable, followed on the second by civil society and youth events. The gathering will conclude on the third and final day with a virtual summit of world leaders on issues in democracy.

Because the theme of this year's summit is "Democracy for Future Generations," the event is expected to focus on two main topics.

First, discussions will focus on the impact of rapidly developing new technologies like AI on democracy for future generations and the response of the international community. The ministerial conference and multi-stakeholder roundtable on the first day will discuss AI, digital technology and democracy. At this event, the government will share with the world the use of new technologies to benefit humans without hampering democracy and seek cooperation to that end.

The second topic is the active participation of youth, who will lead the future. Youth speakers will actively take part in events throughout the three-day summit, with a host of programs to see heavy youth participation. Under the belief that the innovative ideas of youth can contribute to raising global democracy, the Korean government will announce follow-up projects to support the challenges of the younger generation.

The Republic of Korea government's hosting of the third Summit for Democracy shows the nation's commitment to fully implementing its vision to become a global pivotal state contributing to freedom, peace and prosperity in the world. My hope is that this summit serves as a venue for lovers of democracy worldwide to share their insight and wisdom for future generations. I expect the Korean public's active interest in and support for this event. 

Kweon Ki-hwan is deputy minister for multilateral and global affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Translated by Korea.net staff writer Yoon Sojung