By Kang Gahui and Lee Hana

Korea and six member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have agreed to cooperate on the advancement of higher education through a series of official development assistance (ODA) projects.

The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) announced on March 5 in a roundtable event in Jakarta, Indonesia, that it will invest USD 125 million to further develop educational infrastructure at leading national universities in Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar.

These projects will focus on furthering the fields of medicine, health care, agriculture, engineering, information technology, public administration and economics.

KOICA said the ODA plan aligns with the objectives of the Moon administration's New Southern Policy, which is geared toward helping Korea jointly prosper with the ASEAN region. The newly announced initiative will contribute to raising the quality of education, one of ASEAN's sustainable development goals.

"The goal of the New Southern Policy is to bolster cooperation between Korea and ASEAN member states so that we can collectively bring peace and prosperity to all our people," said KOICA President Lee Mi-kyung.

kgh89@korea.kr