K-Railway Excellence, Informing Central and South America… Strengthening ODA Cooperation

□ The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (Minister Park Sang-woo) announced that it will strengthen cooperation in Korean railway technology with Peru and El Salvador through the Official Development Assistance (ODA) program.

Official Development Assistance (ODA) refers to aid provided by governments and public institutions with the goal of promoting economic development and social welfare in developing countries.
ㅇ As the Central and South American region is expanding the ordering of eco-friendly projects such as improving aging infrastructure and metro, we plan to support the feasibility study of the railway project being promoted by Peru and El Salvador to expand our company’s entry into the Central and South American market.

□ The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, together with the Overseas Construction Association and project implementation agencies*, will visit the Peruvian Ministry of Transport and Communications on October 30 and the El Salvadoran Ministry of Public Works and Transportation on November 1 to attend the ODA project commencement report meeting and the ROD (Record of Discussion) signing ceremony that stipulates the implementation of the project promotion burden sharing.

Korea Railroad Corporation, Dohwa ENG, Dongmyeong Technology Corporation, etc.
ㅇ In addition, we plan to meet with Ismael Sutta Soto, Peru’s Vice Minister of Transport and Communications, and Edgar Romeo Rodríguez Herrera, El Salvador’s Minister of Public Works and Transport, to express our will to cooperate in the infrastructure sector, including ODA projects. We also plan to discuss ways to cooperate in promoting this project in conjunction with a feasibility study.

□ Peru is one of the countries in Central and South America where infrastructure cooperation is actively underway, with our company participating in the construction of a new airport in Chinchero (approximately KRW 700 billion), and has continued ODA cooperation focused on the transportation sector.

ㅇ The ‘Peru Chinchero Airport Railroad Construction Feasibility Study Project (’24-’25, KRW 3.6 billion)’ being promoted as a cooperative project this year is a project to connect the Chinchero New Airport area, the gateway to the world-famous tourist destination Machu Picchu, and Cusco by rail.

ㅇ Peru has been promoting ODA projects in cooperation with our government to attract foreign tourists and increase the convenience of movement for its citizens, and plans to expand the possibility of our companies’ participation in the future promotion of this project.

□ Last year, El Salvador’s infrastructure cooperation was strengthened as our company participated in El Salvador’s largest national project, the ‘Los Choros Bridge Construction and Road Improvement Project (USD 370 million, CABEI loan + EDCF co-financing).

ㅇ This year’s cooperative project, the ‘El Salvador Pacific Railway Feasibility Study Project (’24-’25, KRW 1.6 billion)’, is a project to build part of the El Salvador section (Acajutla-San Salvador) of the Pacific Railway project connecting multiple Central and South American countries.

ㅇ Our company conducted a preliminary feasibility study using funds from the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) in 2021, and as the government of El Salvador requested Korea’s cooperation in providing additional technical and financial support for the feasibility study, we plan to increase the possibility of our company’s participation in the future promotion of this project.

ㅇ In particular, this project is the first ODA project that the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport is carrying out with El Salvador, and it will serve as an opportunity to promote the competitiveness and excellence of Korean companies in the railway sector and solidify infrastructure cooperation between the two countries.

□ Kim Sang-moon, Director General of the Construction Policy Bureau of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, emphasized, “Central and South American countries are actively promoting infrastructure expansion in the transportation sector, such as metros and railways, but they prefer loans or public-private partnership (PPP) methods due to the government’s financial burden,” and “It is necessary to actively utilize Korea’s policy finance to secure information on major projects in recipient countries and build networks.”

ㅇ In addition, “So far, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport ODA has supported the infrastructure plans of recipient countries and served as a catalyst for our companies to advance overseas.”

ㅇ He said, “We will continue to expand opportunities for our companies to participate in large-scale infrastructure projects promoted by Central and South American countries through ODA support in the early stages.”

Editor. Hong Se-yeong