The Asian Forest Cooperation Organization (AFoCO) said it has signed an agreement with Woori Financial Group to cooperate for climate control through sustainable forest management and environmental, social and corporate governance.

The AFoCO is an international organization established upon Seoul’s proposal at the 2009 special summit between South Korea and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Through a public-private platform known as the AFoCO green partnership, AFoCO offers businesses opportunities for forestry-related international cooperation on ESG.

Under the deal inked Tuesday, AFoCO and Woori Financial said they would develop and execute joint programs for forest restoration and conservation of biological diversity such as the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+).

The two also plan to cooperate for stronger ESG; global educational and training programs related to forests and the ecosystem; and supplying forest-related knowledge and technology.

As a first step of the agreement, AFoCO and Woori Financial plan to send forest experts to Cambodia in late July to conduct a feasibility survey for a REDD+ project.

REDD+ is a framework created by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) conference to guide activities in the forest sector that reduces emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.

“Forests are being discussed more than ever as a key solution to climate change and challenges to sustainable development. Through forestry cooperation, we will build a partnership with companies to achieve carbon neutrality and an ESG vision,” said Ricardo Calderon, executive director of AFoCO, who attended the signing ceremony on Tuesday with Woori Financial Group chairman Sohn Tae-seung at the banking group’s headquarters in Seoul.

By Lee Kwon-hyung (kwonhl@heraldcorp.com) and Kim So-hyun (sophie@heraldcorp.com)