Ministry of SMEs and Startups and Overseas Missions Step Up as Global Partners for Small and Medium Enterprises

Key Regions for SME and Startup Expansion
Discussion on Cooperation Strategies for Overseas Expansion of Small and Venture Businesses

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will strengthen cooperation as partners for the global market expansion of small and venture businesses.

On the 25th, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that they held a breakfast meeting titled "Approaching Economic and Livelihood Diplomacy: A Meeting between the Minister of SMEs and Startups and Heads of Overseas Missions" at Lotte Hotel in Seoul.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held an event titled "Approaching Economic and Livelihood Diplomacy: A Meeting Between the Minister of SMEs and Startups and Heads of Overseas Missions" on the 25th at Lotte Hotel Seoul. Minister Oh Young-joo of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups is delivering a greeting. Photo by Heo Young-han younghan@

This meeting is a follow-up measure to the memorandum of understanding signed between the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on April 1. It was organized to discuss ways for overseas missions, which are at the forefront of economic and livelihood diplomacy, to cooperate with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups to support the overseas expansion and new market development of small businesses and startups.

Minister Oh Young-joo of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups emphasized, "For domestic small and venture businesses to continuously grow and further lead the Korean economy, targeting overseas markets is essential," adding, "A system such as the ‘Overseas Mission SME and Venture Business Support Council’ is necessary to systematically support them locally and provide timely information."

She also urged that the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and overseas missions must join forces to directly listen to the voices of small and venture businesses facing difficulties abroad and to bring about tangible changes.

Kim Hee-sang, Economic Diplomacy Coordinator at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated, "As the saying goes, ‘The deeper the roots, the lusher the leaves,’ the foundation of industry and innovation lies in strong small and venture businesses, which is essential for pursuing Korea’s economic growth and livelihood stability," and emphasized, "Heads of overseas missions should strengthen their role as bridges connecting our companies with overseas markets."

On this day, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups explained to the heads of overseas missions the global promotion plans of related organizations in the SME and venture sectors, including the Global Business Center, the Overseas Mission Collaboration K-Startup Global Networking Support Project, and the operation plan for the Korea Venture Investment Corp. (KVIC) overseas joint fund. They promised multifaceted policy support available for overseas missions and requested special attention and cooperation from the heads of missions for the global market expansion of our small and venture businesses.

During the subsequent meeting, discussions were held on support measures for the overseas expansion of small and venture businesses, involving key overseas mission heads from major SME export countries such as Vietnam and Malaysia, startup-focused countries such as San Francisco and Singapore, and new market regions such as Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, along with participation from the Small and Medium Business Corporation, the Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development, and Korea Venture Investment Corp.

Minister Oh Young-joo said, "Today’s meeting is another new attempt to establish solid cooperation between the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and a request once again for overseas missions to become reliable global partners for small and venture businesses," adding, "The opinions shared today will be reviewed further and included in the upcoming global support measures to be announced soon. Based on this, we will take the lead in economic and livelihood diplomacy that approaches small and venture businesses together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and overseas missions."