The initiative, which will be through the World Food Programme (WFP), is to help a total of 8.18 million people, including refugees, forced immigrants, and children suffering from nutritional deficiency.

A statement signed by Mr Seung-ho Choi, Foreign Press Spokesperson, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, South Korea, and copied to the Ghana News Agency, said the gesture was to contribute to alleviating the global food crisis worsened by climate change, and international conflicts.

The Republic of Korea joined the Food Assistance Convention (FAC) in 2018, and had since provided 50,000 tonnes of rice in food aid to African and other countries every year.
In 2024, the MAFRA doubled the volume of the food aid to 100,000 tonnes of rice, which was sent to 7.67 million people in eleven countries in Africa and the Middle East.

In 2025, the MAFRA has increased the volume to 150,000 tonnes of rice for 8.18 million people in 17 countries.

The 17 rice aid recipient countries include nine countries in Africa (Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Madagascar, Namibia, Mauritania, Sierra Leone, and Guinea-Bissau).

The four countries in Asia are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Philippines, and Tajikistan).
Beneficiaries in the Middle East are Lebanon, Yemen, and Syria.

One country each in Latin America and the Caribbean are also beneficiaries.

The statement said the ships carrying the 150,000 tonnes of rice would leave South Korea's seaports-the Port of Ulsan, the Port of Gunsan, the Port of Mokpo, and the port in Busan-in April and October this year, and then the first batch of the shipment would arrive in those countries by July.

"The K-Ricebelt project is the Republic of Korea's official development assistance (ODA) project, aimed to contribute to achieving zero hunger in Africa by building large-scale farms for rice seed production in African countries, producing high-yielding rice seeds, and supplying them to farmers.