‘Climate Action AI Forum’ in Cambodia… Introducing innovative technologies of Korean companies

KOICA co-hosts the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change... Tanzania wins ‘AI Award’

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Seong Do-hyeon = The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) announced on the 16th that it held the '2026 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Forum for Climate Action' in Phnom Penh, Cambodia from the 13th to 14th (local time) along with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

This forum was prepared to discuss ways to utilize AI and spread technology to respond to the climate crisis in developing countries. This is the second event following last year's regional forum in Tanzania, Africa, and was held in Asia this year.

About 250 people attended, including international organizations such as the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), development financial institutions, government officials from each country, and AI technology company experts.

At the forum, beyond the potential of AI technology to respond to climate change, actual cases of application in developing countries and ways to utilize it inclusively were discussed from various angles. Various AI solutions in the fields of renewable energy, climate risk prediction, low-carbon and climate smart agriculture, water resource management, and disaster early warning were introduced.

Case studies of Korean companies' innovative technologies through KOICA's Innovative Technology Program (CTS) and Inclusive Business Program (IBS) were also introduced.

'Berry Wars' (IBS), which is working with KOICA to promote an eco-friendly electric motorcycle distribution project in Cambodia, introduced battery AI diagnostic technology that helps resource circulation and greenhouse gas reduction by determining whether batteries can be reused or recycled.

They also proposed ways to contribute to reducing greenhouse gases through the distribution of electric motorcycles.

'Green Goods' (CTS), which operates in Laos, announced the competitiveness of K-AI technology by setting up a promotional booth for a smart poultry farming app that analyzes chicken photos using AI to help diagnose diseases.

In the '2026 AI Award for Climate Action', a contest to respond to the climate crisis in developing countries, 'CLIMAID' developed by the team of Upendo Ernest Limo, a climate change and environment expert researcher from Tanzania, was selected as the final winner.

Clymade is an AI platform that combines climate risk data and community damage information to help determine priorities for investment in adaptation projects.

Kim Jun-mo, head of KOICA's Cambodia office, emphasized, "It is important that AI technology is utilized according to local conditions in developing countries and leads to practical results," and added, "We will expand the government's vision of 'Global AI Basic Society' and 'Green Great Transformation (K-GX)' to international development cooperation."

This forum was prepared as part of the 'Climate Future Partnership' (2024-2027) that KOICA signed with the UNFCCC on the occasion of the 29th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) in 2024. KOICA plans to continue to strengthen international partnerships and actively support AI-based climate action in developing countries.