In his opening address, Mister Choi Wae-chul said, “As efforts to make Saemaul Undong into an academic discipline, which has been discussed in colleges and research institutes, the need for ‘Saeumaul Science’ was raised in 2007, and it came out into the world with the founding of the Korea Saemaul Society and the founding of the Global Saemaul Forum in 2008. Though the history of the Global Saeumaul Forum, which is currently in its eight year this year, may seem a bit short, I believe that due to the passion of the researchers and experts of Saemaul Science and the rapidly increasing demand for sharing of it among emerging countries, the responsibilities of the Global Saemaul Forum has become much heavier.” He added, “The Saemaul Undong is now going beyond being the Korean development experience and a pride of our people, but an asset that should be shared with humanity for the development of emerging nations. Korea received a great deal of assistance from the international society during its course of development to today, and such assistance that Korea received from the international community was not only economical, but includes the blood and tears of young men and women of various countries around the world. Our efforts to repay the blood of the youth around the country spilled during the Korean War should now be passed on to countries that need help today.”

 

 Chairman Choi also said, “Poverty is the cause of many tragedies occurring around the world. Poverty is not a problem for the people of emerging nations alone, but a common issue for all of humanity. Efforts to eradicate poverty are a priority for the global community for a ‘safer and happier world’.” He added, “It is essential to establish an international NGO that can research the Saemaul Undong and share it with the global community for the systematic and effective resolution of this global issue.”

 

 Following his speech, Former Prime Minister Jung Hong-won made his keynote address on ‘Making Humanity Happier by Sharing and Practicing the Saemaul Spirit’ and Former UNCCD Director Luc Gnacadja made his keynote speech on ‘Reducing Poverty and Strengthening Food Security through Soil Pollution Neutralization Strategies’.

 

In his keynote address, Former Prime Minister Jung Hong-won said, “Korea’s development and growth, which I am sure will be deeply engraved in the history of humanity, is an advanced experienced that is a top subject of benchmarking among emerging countries. According to the analysis of the international society, the Saemaul Undong plays a critical role in the background of the development made by Korea.” He added, “Korea’s Saemaul Undong is a success model that shows the appropriateness and effectiveness of official development aid by the international society that is showing independent and sustainable development. There are growing anticipations that it will be an alternative to lead emerging countries to make sustainable development on their own, while realizing common values emphasized by the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) as a Post-2015 development agenda.

 

 Furthermore, Former Prime Minister Jeon said, “The Saemaul Undong suggests several directions so that it can be used as a major leverage in the path to a refined advanced society using sharing strategies for overcoming poverty in the global community.” He followed this by saying, “First, it is necessary to reestablish national awareness on the Saemaul Undong firmly. Second, there should be more positive responses for adding to official development aid funds requested by the international community by the Korean government. Third, efforts to practice and share the Saemaul spirit more assertively is necessary for the development of the global community. Fourth, major advanced countries in the international society working on overcoming global poverty should display more interest and efforts to systematically research the Saemaul spirit and principles to make it into an academic discipline so that it will be possible to foster relevant human resources. Lastly, it is necessary to establish an international organization that can continuously, systematically and effectively research the Saemaul Undong and to share it with the global community.”

 

 In the academic conference held following the keynote address, presentations and discussions were held by dividing into the Saemaul International Development Agenda I and II, and by regional sessions. The ‘Saemaul International Development Agenda I’ was made up of five sessions such as ‘Good Governance and Leadership’, ‘Poverty and Food’, ‘Population and Water’, ‘Climate Change and Natural Resource Management’, and ‘Fair Growth and Transparent Management’. “Saemaul International Development Agenda II’ was made up of the four sessions of ‘Public Health and Healthy Life’, ‘Gender Equality and Citizen Awareness’, ‘Education and Lifelong Learning’, and ‘Social Safety and Safe Communities’.

 

 For the ‘regional sessions’, they were divided into the four groups of ‘Asia I and II’ and ‘Africa I and II’, in which experts from countries around the world made presentations and held discussions. In the regional sessions, current and former high ranking government officials from emerging countries came to make keynote addresses, presentations and discussions. In the ‘Africa I’ session, Culture, Sports and Arts Minister of Kenya, Hassan Wario Arero gave a keynote speech, and in the ‘Asia I’ session, Former Vietnamese Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Ho Xuan Hung made a presentation. At each session, experts in various fields such as high ranking government officials, directors of public institutes, college deans, and prominent academic figures from both Korea and abroad participated en masse, gathering attention.

 

 In the morning of the 16th, KOICA President Kim Young-mok made a keynote speech on the ‘Post-2015 Development Agenda and Usefulness of Sharing the Saemaul Undong’. With YU Park Chung Hee School of Policy and Saemaul Dean Park Seung-woo overseeing the processions, a debate was held with the attendance of Rural Development Administration Lee Yang-ho, Vietnam Ho Chi Minh Academy Vice Director Nyugen Viet Thao, Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements Director Kim Dong-joo, Daegu Vice Mayor Jung Tae-ok, Kenya Vice Minister of Administration Daniel Waisiko Wambura, Peru Tambos Business Bureau Director Walter Lido Guillen Rojas, and UN Asia Pacific Telecommunications Education Center Director Lee Hyun-sook.

 

 In the final event of this forum in the afternoon of the 16th, a declaration was adopted by the participants for the organization of the ‘Global Saemaul Development Network’, and the NGO ‘GSDN’ made its historical launching. GSDN is an international non-government organization organized and prepared for a long time by the Global Saemaul Forum, and it will play a centrifugal role for sharing and spreading the Saemaul Undong such as training, educating, researching and consulting the Saemaul Undong, Saemaul spirit, and Saemaul development to the global community. Global Saemaul Forum Chairman Choi Wae-chul (YU Vice President) claimed the need for the establishment of an international organization to share the Saemaul spirit and Saemaul development with emerging countries in the First Global Saemaul Leaders Conference and the Global Saemaul Forum in 2014.

 

 Meanwhile, during the forum period, YU signed work MOUs with the Housing Construction Hygiene Ministry of Peru in South America and the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology of Kenya in Africa.