National Tourism Strategy Meeting elevated to presidential level; broader participation by private sector and local governments

[Financial News] The National Tourism Strategy Meeting will be elevated from being under the prime minister to being under the president. Fifteen ministries and the Presidential Office will participate, and a system will be established to incorporate the views of private-sector experts and local governments into tourism policy.
According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) on the 20th, a draft decree fully revising the “Regulations on the Organization and Operation of the National Tourism Strategy Meeting,” which contains these changes, was approved at a Cabinet meeting that day. The revised regulations will take effect on the 29th.
The reorganization follows the revision of the Framework Act on Tourism last April. It focuses on changing the chair of the National Tourism Strategy Meeting from the prime minister to the president and strengthening interministerial policy coordination and public-private cooperation.
The meeting’s members will include the Minister of Trade and Industry, who oversees the exhibition industry, and the Minister of Employment and Labor, who oversees workforce development and job creation in the tourism sector. The heads of 15 ministries and a senior secretary at the Presidential Office responsible for supporting tourism policy will participate, while the head of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, a current member, will be excluded.
The meeting secretary will be elevated from the MCST’s Second Vice Minister to the MCST minister. The “Vice Minister Coordination Meeting,” which discusses agenda items in advance, will be reorganized as the “Working-Level Coordination Meeting,” chaired by the senior secretary at the Presidential Office responsible for supporting tourism policy.
An expert advisory panel of up to 20 members may be formed to hear views from the private sector. The MCST minister will appoint experts in areas such as inbound tourism, regional tourism, tourism infrastructure and the tourism industry.
A legal basis has also been established for operating the “Regional Tourism Promotion Council” to gather local government views. The MCST’s Second Vice Minister will chair the council, and vice heads of regional governments will serve as members to discuss agenda items submitted to it. The council’s collected views will be reported to the strategy meeting.
The Framework Act on Tourism requires the government to formulate and implement a basic tourism promotion plan every five years. The government is also required to draw up annual implementation plans under the basic plan, evaluate progress and reflect the results in the basic plan.
The meeting’s role in reviewing policy performance has also been specified. It will deliberate and coordinate not only the formulation of tourism promotion plans but also the evaluation of progress and the incorporation of results, so that each ministry’s performance is reflected in the next plan.
MCST Minister Choi Hwi-young said, “This draft decree for a full revision will provide a strong policy foundation for the tourism industry, a ‘strategic industry for national growth’ and a ‘breakthrough for addressing regional depopulation.’”
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