President Park mulls Africa trip: FM Yun

SEOUL, July 14 (Yonhap) -- President Park Geun-hye is considering a trip to Africa as part of South Korea's efforts to improve bilateral ties, Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se said Tuesday. He made the remark in a meeting with Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, chairman of the African Union (AU) Commission, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the ministry said. "South Korea is constantly reviewing the possibility of President Park's visit to the AU, along with a plan to hold a South Korea-Africa (ministerial) forum within this year," Yun was quoted as telling Zuma. It would be her first trip to Africa as South Korea's leader but no specific schedule has been announced yet. Diplomatic sources said Park will travel there in the first half of next year, saying she is "personally" interested in the continent. Yun invited Zuma to visit Seoul and he said he would try to do so in the near future, according to the ministry. The AU leader also stressed South Korea can play an important role in developing education and technology in Africa, it added. Yun is on a visit to the Ethiopian capital to attend a global summit seeking to tackle poverty. The third International Conference on Financing for Development opened in Addis Ababa on Monday (local time), joined by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, top government officials, business leaders, and humanitarian groups from around the world. lcd@yna.co.kr (END)