International Cooperation, Tourism, Investment, and Design Elevate Busan’s Status
Meeting with Shanghai Mayor, Signing Joint Declaration to Strengthen City Relations
Visit to Royal Russell School in London and Attendance at the World Design Congress
Park Hyungjoon, the Mayor of Busan, has departed for Shanghai, China, and London, United Kingdom, for 'Busan Sales' activities.
The Busan Metropolitan Government announced that from September 8 to September 12, Mayor Park will visit Shanghai and London on a five-day, three-night schedule. This overseas trip is entirely focused on elevating Busan's international status and advancing its ambitions to become a global hub city.
For his first official activity, Mayor Park will visit Shanghai to meet with the Mayor of Shanghai and sign a joint declaration to strengthen the sister-city relationship between the two cities. Through this, Busan aims to expand cooperation beyond the existing fields of economy, culture, tourism, education, and maritime affairs, to new industries such as the digital economy and the silver economy, while also seeking ways to broaden the foundation for information and human resource exchanges.
He will then visit Trip.com Group, the world's largest online travel agency, to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on tourism cooperation and discuss strategies to enhance Busan's global tourism profile and attract more international tourists. The city expects this agreement to strengthen international tourism collaboration and contribute to the expansion of global tourism networks.
In addition, a three-party investment agreement will be signed with Thousand Oaks Biopharmaceuticals Inc., a global cell culture media company, and KCell Biosciences, an investment company. KCell Biosciences, which is currently building a manufacturing plant in Gijang, Busan, plans to use this agreement as a stepping stone to localize cell culture media and expand investment to foster the growth of the domestic bioindustry.
Afterwards, Mayor Park will travel to London to visit Royal Russell School, which plans to establish a campus in Myeongji International New City, to solidify plans for Busan's first foreign educational institution. The city intends to use this cooperation as a foundation to nurture global talent and strengthen educational exchanges.
On September 10, Mayor Park will attend the 34th World Design Congress and deliver an acceptance speech for Busan's designation as the World Design Capital (WDC) 2028. Busan was selected in July over Hangzhou, China, with its vision of "Inclusive City, Engaged Design." Moving forward, the city plans to implement design projects across the entire city, involving citizens, academia, industry, and public institutions, to strengthen its capacity as a global design hub.
He will also visit the studio of world-renowned designer Thomas Heatherwick to discuss people-centered urban design and explore possibilities for collaboration.
The Busan Metropolitan Government expects this overseas trip to serve as a catalyst for expanding practical international exchanges in various fields such as tourism, investment, education, and design, and to further enhance the value of Busan's global city brand.
Mayor Park stated, "This trip will mark the starting point for Busan to leap forward as a global hub city, based on its innovative capabilities and urban competitiveness," adding, "Through practical cooperation with major cities around the world, we will elevate Busan's city brand and achieve sustainable results."
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