Korea in full support mode for bringing back the big events
WITH A STRONG PIPELINE AND INCOMING INTERNATIONAL EVENTS BUSINESS SPREAD AROUND THE COUNTRY , AS WELL AS INCREASED SUPPORT FOR ORGANISERS , KOREA IS ON THE MEETINGS MARCH AGAIN
C onvention pipeline hot for future events Korea ’ s successful return to the international conference and major events market is illustrated by the high-profile bids coming down the pipeline including the right to host the 2025 Osteoarthritis Research Society International World Congress ( OARSI ). This is expected to gather 1,500 experts from 50 countries to Songdo Convensia , Incheon in April 2025 . The Ministry of Culture , Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organisation ( KTO ) had successfully bid for what is the largest meeting in the world among osteoarthritis-related conferences .
KTO partnered with Dr Gun-Il Im , president of OARSI and an active Korea MICE Ambassador , and supported visits to Korea for OARSI members . ( Since 2017 , KTO has appointed 11 prominent figures from academic associations and organisations as Korea MICE Ambassadors ).
Kwon Jong Sool , executive director of the Korea MICE Bureau , says Korea is a country with “ the world ’ s best human resources , advanced technology and networks in various fields including IT and medicine . We will continue to focus our efforts on attracting events of international scale to invite experts from around the world , and actively promote Korea as a top meetings destination ”.
Korea will also host 15,000 delegates for the 2023 USANA Asia Pacific Convention at KINTEX , Goyang . This bid was a joint effort with KTO , Gyeonggi Tourism Organisation , Goyang CVB and the venue . The convention will take place 4-6 May . It is an annual event held by global cell nutrition science corporation , USANA Health Sciences , Inc ., which has branches in 24 countries . It will be the largest corporate meeting held in Korea .
USANA held its annual convention in Singapore from 2015 to 2019 , however , since 2020 , other host locations came into consideration due to an increase in the number of convention participants . Two countries , Korea and Malaysia , submitted bids for the event , which will be the first offline edition in four years due to Covid .
Korea has also successfully won its bid host 2026 Intelligent Transport System ( ITS ) World Congress in Gangneung . Over 60,000 participants from 100 countries are expected to take part .
The Ministry of Land , Infrastructure and Transport said the eastern city won its bid to hold the international event over
Left : Members of Korea ’ s MICE industry attend the Proclamation Ceremony Photo and p4 photo courtesy of KTO
Taiwan . ITS is the largest international exhibition and academic conference in the transport community . Seoul held the event in 1998 and Busan hosted it in 2010 .
Countries in three regions – the Americas , Europe and Asia Pacific – take turns holding the event . Korea has spent 36 billion won ($ 25m over the past two years to improve its overall transport and city infrastructure . “ The ITS World Congress is expected to generate 372.9 billion won ( US $ 290m ) in economic value , and create over 2,000 jobs ,” the ministry said in a statement .
Gangneung is in tune to host the World Choir Game 2023 and the 2024 Gangwon Winter Youth Olympics along with three other cities ( Gangwon , Pyeongchang , Jeongseon ) in Gangwon Province .
And , an example of a successful event already held , the 24th International Congress on Acoustics ( ICA 2022 ) in Gyeongju , Korea , 24 – 28 October , successfully attracted around 1,000 delegates from 40 countries .
Koreans have a well-known love of music , from K-pop to Western classical music to reinterpretations of traditional Korean music . It follows that Koreans are highly sensitive to the quality of sound , not only in musical instruments but also in everyday products and spaces . As the cradle of the country ’ s religion , philosophy , arts and indeed , music , Gyeongju can offer visitors an insight into the development of acoustics in Korea . The city is effectively an open-air museum full of ancient treasures which include three UNESCO World Heritage Sites . All that made for an ideal backdrop for ICA 2022 .
KTO ’ s new MICE initiatives Korea is working on new strategy for sustainable development of its MICE industry and the Ministry of Culture ,
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