Rose Jang and Ibu Jin Join Hands: "We Will Achieve 10 Million K-Tourism Visitors"

Attended the Korea Visit Year Directors Meeting Held at Shilla Hotel

Jang Miran, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and Lee Boo-jin, Chairperson of the Korea Visit Year Committee, expressed their commitment to join forces to normalize the inbound tourism market.

According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (hereinafter 'MCST') on the 31st, Vice Minister Jang attended a luncheon meeting with the directors of the Korea Visit Year Committee Foundation held at the Shilla Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul. At this meeting, Vice Minister Jang and Chairperson Lee exchanged opinions on the success of the '2023-2024 Korea Visit Year.'

Jang Mi-ran, the 2nd Vice Minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, attended the luncheon meeting of the Board of Directors of the Korea Visit Year Committee held at the Orchid Hall of the Shilla Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul on the 31st, and took a commemorative photo with Lee Boo-jin, the Chairperson of the Korea Visit Year Committee.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Vice Minister Jang first expressed gratitude for the interest and efforts shown by Chairperson Lee and the directors for the successful promotion of the 'Korea Visit Year.' He said, "Recently, global interest in K-Culture has led to increased visits to Korea," adding, "We will strengthen public-private cooperation so that K-tourism can become a bucket list for people worldwide and devote ourselves to achieving the goal of 10 million foreign tourists this year."

He continued, "With the resumption of group tours from China, foreign tourist visits are expected to recover rapidly, and we will support efforts to accelerate this further," adding, "We will continue to expand the scope of K-tourism, which is fused with the irreplaceable weapon of K-Culture, and actively explore new fields such as sports tourism so that foreign tourists can have special experiences in Korea."

MCST Increases Budget for Next Year's 'Korea Visit Year' to 17.8 Billion KRW

The MCST has significantly increased the budget related to next year's Korea Visit Year to 17.8 billion KRW, a 78% increase from this year. This is aimed at more active efforts to attract foreign tourists, including hosting large-scale campaigns and major events such as K-pop concerts to create a welcoming atmosphere for inbound tourism, while also striving to improve the quality of tourism services.

This was the first time Vice Minister Jang, who took office in July, met and conversed with Chairperson Lee at a gathering. At a tourism press conference held on the 25th of last month at Seolgaon on the basement first floor of the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Jongno-gu, Seoul, Vice Minister Jang said regarding the 2023-2024 Korea Visit Year, "I will actively work on things that can be helpful in consultation with Lee Boo-jin, Chairperson of the Korea Visit Year Committee."

Lee Boo-jin, CEO of Hotel Shilla, was appointed as the new Chairperson of the Korea Visit Year Committee in February. At that time, the board of directors of the Korea Visit Year Committee stated the reason for her election: "Chairperson Lee Boo-jin has demonstrated outstanding management skills as the CEO of Hotel Shilla, which focuses on businesses closely related to the tourism industry," adding, "Based on her expertise in the domestic and international tourism industries, she is the right person to lay the foundation for public-private cooperation to open the era of 30 million foreign tourists by 2027 through creative leadership."