Launch of the Korea Exhibition MICE Convention Event Industry Council

"Achieving System Improvement and Budget Expansion Through the Voices of 200,000 Workers"

Exhibition, MICE, convention, and event industry officials jointly issued a statement at the end of last year urging the implementation of With Corona measures.
[Photo by Asia Economy DB]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jong-hwa] The Korea Exhibition MICE Convention Event Industry Council will hold its inauguration ceremony at the Kensington Hotel in Yeouido on the 8th and officially begin its activities.

The Korea Exhibition MICE Convention Event Industry Council is an organization formed by the union of industry groups and academic societies including the Korea Exhibition Organizers Association, Korea Exhibition Event Industry Cooperative, Korea MICE Association, Korea PCO Association, Korea Event Industry Cooperative, Korea Event Industry Association, Korea Event Association, Korea Trade Exhibition Society, Korea MICE Tourism Society, and Korea Convention Event Society.

Gong Min-seong, the council's secretary-general, stated, "Over the past two years of experiencing the COVID-19 crisis, we realized that jointly responding to compensation for losses, social distancing, and improvements to the direct production certification system was effective," adding, "We decided to form an official consultative body to carry out activities because the next government needs groundbreaking institutional improvements and budget support for the development of the exhibition, MICE, convention, and event industries."

At the inauguration ceremony, participating organizations demanded institutional reforms such as the revision of the Exhibition Industry Development Act and the Act on the Promotion of International Conferences, as well as the enactment of the Event Industry Development Act, and prepared policy proposals for the development of related industries. Representatives from major presidential candidates including the Democratic Party, People Power Party, People Party, and Justice Party are also expected to attend the ceremony.

The annual sales of related industries such as exhibitions, international conferences, local festivals, and linked tourism exceed approximately 12 trillion won, with about 200,000 people employed. However, since COVID-19, the industry has suffered severe sales declines and workforce reductions, and was designated as a special employment crisis industry.