Selection of 20 Trainees for the 4th Cohort of the Global Infrastructure Development Policy Capacity Building Program

20 Selected from 86 Applicants Across 24 Countries... Training Program Starts September 3

[Asia Economy Reporter Kangwook Cho] The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 29th that it has finalized the selection of 20 trainees for the 4th term of the Global Infrastructure Development Scholarship Program and will cover all expenses including tuition, dormitory fees, and field training for the course starting on September 3.

This program has been operated since 2018 to establish a foundation for expanding domestic companies' entry into overseas construction markets. It has produced 20 graduates in the 1st term and 19 in the 2nd term, and currently, 20 trainees of the 3rd term, who are scheduled to graduate in December, are undergoing training.

Contrary to expectations that the number of applicants would be low due to COVID-19 this year, the open recruitment held in June targeted 31 priority cooperation countries in the overseas construction sector, resulting in 86 applicants from 24 countries applying in various fields such as railroads, housing, finance, and investment development projects, recording a competition rate of 4.3 to 1. The Ministry selected 42 candidates through the first document screening and then finalized 20 successful applicants on the 9th after the second online interview. By country, there are 3 from Indonesia, 3 from Uzbekistan, 2 from Malaysia, 2 from Thailand, 2 from Cambodia, 1 from Ethiopia, 1 from Kenya, 2 from Tanzania, 1 from Rwanda, 1 from Uganda, 1 from Ghana, and 1 from Peru.

This program transfers Korea’s infrastructure development experience and technology to trainees to cultivate core talents in infrastructure development among public officials from priority cooperation countries. It also enhances Korea’s international image as a leading country in infrastructure development and contributes to supporting domestic companies’ overseas expansion by building a cooperative network through expanded exchanges between public officials from priority cooperation countries and domestic company practitioners, which has been highly evaluated for its effectiveness.

In addition to basic classes, the program offers a rich curriculum including field visits to railroads, roads, and new town developments, internships, and invited company roundtable meetings, allowing participating trainees to experience Korea’s diverse infrastructure development firsthand, resulting in very high satisfaction among trainees.

In fact, two Cambodian trainees who enrolled in September last year (Dim Sokkhim, Throng Chandaravuth) expressed in a contribution to the K-Build journal published by the Overseas Construction Association, "Above all, we are very pleased to benchmark Korea’s know-how in public-private partnership projects to promote private sector participation in infrastructure projects in Cambodia. We hope to contribute to Cambodia’s sustainable infrastructure development and growth with the infrastructure development experience and technology learned in Korea."

Oh Seong-ik, Director of the Overseas Construction Policy Division at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, said, "We expect the Global Infrastructure Development Scholarship Program to lay the foundation for exporting the Korean model through fostering convergent infrastructure development personnel and to contribute to revitalizing overseas expansion of our construction companies." He added, "We plan to actively support overseas orders by establishing long-term cooperative systems with major countries where domestic companies enter."