The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Australia and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea (hereinafter jointly referred to as the "Participants");

• Sharing a common interest in advancing economic growth, reducing poverty and promoting stability in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond;
• Committed to protecting and promoting the primacy of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, implementing the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and improving development effectiveness, while enhancing the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership;
• Considering the long-standing commitment of the Government of Australia (hereinafter "Australia") and the Government of the Republic of Korea (hereinafter "Korea") to enhance cooperation on development and humanitarian assistance; and
• Desiring to outline the principles and objectives for Australia-Korea collaboration in development and humanitarian assistance and reaffirm the basis for this collaboration;

Have reached the following understanding:

Partnership Principles

The purpose of this Memorandum of Understanding (hereinafter "MOU") is to advance the partnership on development cooperation between the Participants, which will be guided by the following principles:

1. mutual respect for the contribution from each country and recognition of the comparative advantage each brings to development policy and programming;
2. acknowledgement of the need for practical collaborative efforts to promote efficiency and effectiveness in implementing development cooperation and humanitarian assistance;
3. commitment to continuous improvement of the Participants' respective development cooperation programs;
4. commitment to embedding innovation throughout the two countries' organisations and to exploring new ways to implement development cooperation and humanitarian assistance and support partner countries' embrace of innovation in their development; and
5. diversity, inclusion and equity, including collaboration with other key donor countries and multilateral development partners where appropriate.

Priority Areas

Priority areas of cooperation between the Participants include:

1. supporting progress towards achieving the Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;
2. engaging new development partners, including from the private sector, to provide financing and new ideas for development cooperation programs;
3. advancing gender equality and women's and girls' empowerment across development cooperation programs and humanitarian assistance;
4. strengthening collaboration in the Indo-Pacific region, particularly in the fields of climate change, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief;
5. coordinating the Participants' engagement in relevant multilateral and regional issues, including through the OECD Development Assistance Committee, and contributing to tackling global development challenges; and
6. promoting development effectiveness at a regional and international level, in line with the Paris Declaration (2005), the Accra Agenda for Action (2008) and the Busan Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation (2011).

Cooperation Process

Australia and Korea will deepen collaboration in development cooperation, including through Australia's new International Development Policy and Korea's Strategic Plan for Official Development Assistance. The Participants will seek to enhance coordination related to their respective development cooperation and humanitarian assistance programs. The Participants will also seek to strengthen collaboration through the exchange of personnel and expertise as appropriate. Collaboration will be driven by:

1. biennial High Level Consultations on Development Cooperation between senior officials from Australia and Korea with a view to exploring specific areas of collaboration under the partnership and review progress; and
2. periodic reviews of progress by Ministers within the framework of the 2+2 Foreign and Defence Ministers' Meeting and by senior officials through the Strategic Dialogue.

Disputes

Any disputes arising from the interpretation or implementation of this MOU will be resolved through consultation between the Participants. Disputes will not be referred to any national or international tribunal or third party for settlement.

Legal Status

This MOU is not intended to create any legally binding rights or obligations and will be carried out in accordance with the respective laws and regulations of Australia and Korea.

Amendment

This MOU may be amended with the written mutual consent of the Participants.

Entry into Effect, Duration and Termination

1. This MOU will come into effect on the date of the last signature and will remain in effect until terminated in accordance with paragraph 7(2) below. Upon its entry into effect, this MOU will replace in its entirety the Memorandum of Understanding on Development Cooperation between the Participants, signed on 10 December 2019.
2. This MOU will remain in effect for three (3) years. Either Participant may terminate this MOU at any time. A Participant should endeavour to provide the other Participant thirty (30) days' advance written notice of its intent to terminate this MOU. The Participants will consult to jointly determine how any outstanding matters should be dealt with.

SIGNED on the fifth day of March 2024 and the sixteenth day of February 2024.

Roderick Brazier
Deputy Secretary, Development, Multilateral and Europe Group
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Australia

Kweon Ki-hwan
Deputy Minister for Multilateral and Global Affairs
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea