United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday received this year’s Seoul Peace Prize on Monday for his devotion to world peace, the rights of women and children and the fight against climate change.

He was granted $200,000 in honorarium at a ceremony in Seoul as the first Korean winner. The country created the biennial award in 1990 to commemorate its hosting of the 1988 Olympic Games here and those contributing to international peace and unity. 

Previous recipients include Kofi Annan, Ban’s predecessor, in 1998 and Muhammad Yunus, the founder of Grameen Bank, in 2006.

“Ban first thought cool-headedly, took the initiative and set an example with warm-hearted actions to aggressively coordinate and mediate complicated issues involving many nations and regions,” Lee Chul-seung, chairman of the Seoul Peace Prize Selection Committee, said in a statement.

“His peaceful approach has greatly contributed to the promotion of harmony and welfare among people around the world, while realizing a ‘strong U.N.’ that the international community desires.”

Ban arrived here Sunday for a four-day stay. He is scheduled to give his first speech to the National Assembly on Tuesday, and deliver addresses at other events held by civic groups and business organizations.

Earlier in the day, Ban expressed hopes for a joint team from the two Koreas for the 2015 World University Games in Gwangju.

He said the U.N. is making efforts for the initiative in line with an agreement forged in July between the New York-headquartered organization and the Universiade steering committee.

“We are even exploring the possibility of the first-ever united Korean team to compete jointly at the event,” he said at a forum in Seoul on public diplomacy.

Ban, 68, was reelected last year for a second five-year term at the helm of the 193-member organization.

By Shin Hyon-hee (heeshin@heraldcorp.com)