APEC Ministerial Meeting Starts in Incheon from 26th… Incheon City Actively Promotes City Brand

【Financial News Incheon=Han Gap-soo Reporter】 Prior to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit to be held in Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk, ministerial meetings in various fields will begin in Incheon on the 26th.
Incheon City announced on the 13th that the 'APEC Third Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM3) and Related Ministerial Meetings' will be held from the 26th to August 15th at Songdo Convensia in Songdo International City.
The city is focusing on final preparations to enhance the completeness of the conference by finalizing the progress and detailed plans in various fields for the successful hosting of the APEC meeting.
The 'APEC Third Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM3) and Related Ministerial Meetings' held in Incheon are intended to pre-coordinate the agenda of the APEC Summit to be held in Gyeongju. Senior officials from each country's Ministry of Science and ICT, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, and Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission will attend and conduct over 200 related meetings. The Finance Ministers' Meeting to be held in October will discuss measures to resolve income inequality, led by the Ministry of Strategy and Finance. About 5,000 representatives from each country will visit Incheon for the two events.
The city has formed a dedicated task force (TF) led by Hwang Hyo-jin, Deputy Mayor for Global City Affairs, in March and has been closely cooperating with central ministries and related organizations for the smooth hosting of the APEC Incheon meeting. In particular, a total of 3.2 billion won, including 1.2 billion won secured through government supplementary budgets and 2 billion won from the city budget, has been invested in the renovation of Songdo Convensia facilities.
The city sees the two APEC Incheon meetings as a golden opportunity to promote Incheon and plans to actively promote the city brand and stimulate the local economy.
Accordingly, during the event period, the city has prepared special programs to allow delegations to tour Incheon’s Open Port Area in Jung-gu, Incheon International Airport, Incheon Free Economic Zone, Samsung Biologics, and participate in events such as the Ganghwa Island tour, Songdo Beach Festival, Pentaport Rock Festival, Inspire Resort, and 'Summer Sound in the Port'.
The city expects an economic effect of 40.9 billion won and the creation of over 400 jobs through accommodation, tourism, food, and experiential activities for visitors.
The APEC Summit is an annual meeting attended by leaders and ministers from 21 countries in the Asia-Pacific region, held in a distributed manner in Seoul, Busan, Incheon, Jeju, and Gyeongju. The main meeting will be held in Gyeongju in November.
Deputy Mayor Hwang Hyo-jin said, “This APEC Incheon meeting will be an important opportunity for Incheon to leap forward as a global top ten city,” and added, “We will prepare thoroughly to host a successful international event.”
kapsoo@fnnews.com Han Gap-soo Reporter