[Chatham House Roundtable] MICE Industry's Revival at 2.7 Times General Tourism Spending, Starting with a Control Tower

Division between International Skills Culture Department and Exhibition Industry Department makes finding common ground difficult
Competitor countries like Taiwan and Thailand have dedicated agencies
Lee Myung-bak administration fostered new growth engines, achieved rapid development including hosting G20
Government support period capped at 3 years after graduation, needs extension to 5-10 years for long-term preparation
Differentiation needed beyond copycat events, global trend emphasizes small-scale and regional characteristics
Strength in online events integrating IT technology, enhancing Korea's status with K-pop and K-content

Editor's NoteAs the activation of knowledge and information exchange becomes increasingly important, the MICE (Meetings, Incentives Travel, Conventions, Exhibitions/Events) industry based on this is continuously growing. According to the global market research firm Research and Markets, the global MICE market size is expected to reach $1.5623 trillion (approximately 2,070 trillion KRW) by 2030. The government has announced a plan to revitalize the MICE industry by increasing the number of international conferences (conventions) held domestically to 1,400 annually, aiming to be ranked 'world number one' in international conference hosting performance (based on the Union of International Associations, UIA) by 2028. The Korean MICE industry reached the top spot worldwide in 2016 by hosting a total of 997 international conferences, but after COVID-19, the number of events plummeted to about 30%, raising calls for the industry's resurgence. On the 26th of last month, Asia Economy held a 'Chatham House Roundtable' at its headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, providing a forum to discuss policies for the revival of the K-MICE industry, the role of local governments, and measures for sustainable MICE. The Chatham House is the nickname for the Royal Institute of International Affairs (RIIA) in the UK, regarded as a top-tier research institution in diplomacy and security. Attendees included Professor Emeritus Ko Hwang of Kyung Hee University Graduate School of Hotel and Tourism, Senior Research Fellow Kim Hyun-jung of the Korea Convergence Tourism Institute, Director Park Mi-kyung of the Convergence Tourism Industry Division at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Professor Lee Byung-chul of Gyeonggi University’s Department of Tourism and Events, and Secretary-General Ha Hong-guk of the Korea MICE Association (in alphabetical order). The roundtable disclosed the list of participants but followed the Chatham House Rule by anonymizing each speaker's remarks.

Measures to Revitalize the MICE Industry and Tourism at Chatham House. From left: Professor Lee Byung-chul, Department of Tourism and Event Management, Kyonggi University; Senior Research Fellow Kim Hyun-jung, Korea Convergence Tourism Research Institute; Director Park Mi-kyung, Convergence Tourism Industry Division, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism; Distinguished Professor Kim Cheol-won, Graduate School of Tourism, Kyung Hee University; Secretary General Ha Hong-guk, Korea MICE Association. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

Last year, the bid for the Busan Expo ended in failure. There are talks about analyzing the reasons for failure and preparing for the next attempt. At the same time, it is strange that world-class companies like Samsung, LG, Hyundai Motor, and the origin countries of K-pop and K-content do not have their own international events comparable to an Expo. There is also an opinion that Korea should regularly host its own world-class MICE events.

Participant A

There is a structural problem. In Korea, the governance system is split: international functions are under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, while exhibitions fall under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Therefore, there is no agency that acts as a control tower for integrated international events like the Expo. For example, Taiwan has the Taiwan External Trade Development Council under the Ministry of Economic Affairs dedicated to MICE operations, and Thailand has the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) under the Prime Minister’s Office, which manages the MICE industry smoothly. In the current dualized situation like Korea’s, it is very difficult to find intersections between meetings, incentives travel, conventions, and exhibitions.

Measures to Revitalize the MICE Industry and Tourism at Chatham House. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

Participant B

Actually, when it comes to the Expo, everyone worldwide knows what kind of event it is, and when it is hosted, everyone can predict the effects on the national image and economic aspects, so the country invests national interest in the bid. However, for events created domestically, it takes a very long time to build that level of brand naming. There are talks about creating a Korean version of the 'Davos Forum,' but realistically, it is expected to take at least 30 years for such a forum to be born and grow. Currently, government policies for signature or global meetings have a regional support period limit of three years, but even if results do not come immediately, support should be sustained for at least five to ten years with a long-term perspective.

Participant C

The Lee Myung-bak administration (2008?2012) designated MICE as a new growth engine industry and focused on its development, leading to remarkable growth in Korea’s MICE industry.

Before that, support was limited to simple convention industry assistance, but during the Lee Myung-bak administration, the G20 Summit was held, followed by ministerial meetings and UN events, and the effects expanded into the private sector, making large-scale international conference hosting a major driver for industry growth.

Participant A

According to a 2008 Korea Tourism Organization MICE-related research statistic during the Lee Myung-bak administration, the average spending of international conference participants was 2.7 times higher than general tourism spending. MICE attracted attention as a high value-added industry and was designated as the 17th new growth engine industry, shifting interest from the convention concept to a knowledge-based core industry and a 21st-century new growth engine, leading to rapid growth.

Participant C

Based on this, Korea ranked first worldwide in international conference hosting according to the Union of International Associations (UIA) in 2016 and 2017. If we want to create our own unique MICE beyond just hosting, it will require much longer time than what was invested then. However, with the global popularity of K-content and the K-pop wave led by BTS, Korea’s economic and cultural status has significantly risen, which may shorten that period somewhat. We should leverage these advantages well to plan differentiated events rather than copying others, and encourage the emergence of various regional autonomous governance bodies to operate them.

Measures to Revitalize the MICE Industry and Tourism at Chatham House. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

Participant D

Including the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Seoul City is moving away from evaluating existing convergence international conference support projects on an annual basis and selecting projects for the next year based on that. In fact, the government has never supported any event for at least three years continuously. Recently, efforts and awareness of sustainability have been confirmed, centered on the government and local governments, such as Seoul City’s 'Five-Year Support Program for International Conference Activation' announced last year. When such long-term support and development start from the government or Seoul City, other local governments gradually follow. Recently, many local governments are also pushing for ordinance amendments to extend support periods, which is an encouraging trend.

Rather than simply increasing hosting achievements, the argument to build our own MICE seems to emphasize the importance of evaluation systems for qualitative growth as much as quantitative growth.

Measures to Revitalize the MICE Industry and Tourism at Chatham House. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

Participant D

That’s right. Actually, if you go to events like CES, most companies are Korean, but the reason such events are not held in Korea is because the U.S. market is large and buyers gather in that big market. Since there are global Korean companies, holding events in Korea can guarantee a certain number of participants, but structurally, it is difficult to form and expand a community beyond just large companies coming together. Therefore, the process of creating large-scale events should go on one track methodologically, but considering global methods, we must have both a track to support and develop our MICE industry and a track to attract foreign events. We emphasize regions, but the goal is to globalize from the region, and the event should globalize to eventually form a pyramid structure.

Participant A

To see the results of quantitative growth, data economy statistics must be thoroughly aligned. In fact, since 2010, we have done our best to gather all international conferences, so UIA (Union of International Associations) results inevitably increased. By discovering and announcing hidden events, the numbers grew, but the reality could have been different. Now, it is necessary to thoroughly build a data system that can be utilized according to international standards.

Measures to Revitalize the MICE Industry and Tourism at Chatham House. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

Participant E

Last year, a special industry classification code for exhibitions was established. If follow-up measures proceed this year, a special industry classification code for international conference businesses will likely be set. According to Oxford Economics’ report last year on the GDP contribution of the MICE industry in 50 countries worldwide, it amounts to $1.6 trillion. Korea ranks 13th in the world economy, and the scale is similar. According to statistics from the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute, the total size of Korea’s MICE industry is estimated at 22 trillion KRW. However, Korea currently ranks 10th to 13th in global international conference hosting rankings, and considering the size of the international industry, it can be estimated at least 30 to 40 trillion KRW. Seeing the parts missed even in national statistics, I think government policies and support should not only focus on the implementation stage but also analyze and reflect ripple effects and legacy after the projects.

Measures to Revitalize the MICE Industry and Tourism at Chatham House. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

MICE should be viewed not just as simple international conferences or exhibitions but from the perspective of an industry with great scalability.

Participant A

Currently, the MICE Alliance member companies are very diverse. However, among those members, there are continuous complaints that their industries are not reflected in industry-related statistics. The K-Convention standards and policies from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism give more points when conventions and exhibitions are converged, so there should be a system that boldly supports such things. After COVID-19, international conferences continue in a hybrid form combining face-to-face and non-face-to-face, and with growing non-face-to-face demand, online events incorporating IT technology play a complementary role across the MICE industry. I attended the 'Content Universe Korea' event that debuted last year, and one attendee reacted, "What kind of international conference is this?" However, overseas speakers praised the event’s atmosphere reminiscent of the universe and the unique format and concept of the tent zones inside the venue, which provided strong immersion and diverse inclusiveness. International conferences are changing into various forms.

Participant C

Exactly. We need to be flexible according to trends. There are large events like the Expo or CES, but looking at the current outlook for international conferences, they are becoming smaller and more regional. Especially in Korea, many events focus on hybrid formats combining face-to-face and non-face-to-face. In such cases, connectivity is treated as more important than facility size, so collaboration and convergence are important to leverage Korea’s technological strengths and expand the industry’s pie.

Measures to Revitalize the MICE Industry and Tourism at Chatham House. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

The need for sustainable MICE is also emerging. What are your thoughts?

Participant B

Many international conferences have been one-off events, and there has been criticism that the importance of environmental protection and sustainability has been overlooked. As sustainability efforts are required in both exhibitions and tourism, various eco-friendly and cultural diversity programs that leave meaningful messages beyond event success and participant satisfaction are being introduced.

Participant A

We must also pay attention to climate change issues. Korea participated in the bid for the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) held in Dubai last year but lost. The government should be more proactive in bidding for the 2028 event. As technological advancements and carbon neutrality issues become globally important, attention should be paid not only to on-site practices but also to attracting related events.