SEOUL, Jan 25, 2022: Busan Metropolitan City and Busan Tourism Organization (BTO) declare 2022 as the year when they will become the global MICE city in the post-Covid-19 era and accelerate their sustainable MICE project , including ESG management*.
Expectations are high this year as more international conferences are planned for Busan, attracting thousands of foreign delegates.
※ ESG management, short for Environment · Social · Governance, refers to overall management activities related to environmental and social responsibility.
Entering the third year of Covid-19, the MICE industry in Busan is expected to evolve as vigorously as before the pandemic. To gradually revive the MICE industry, Busan has built an optimized MICE infrastructure for hybrid online and offline events and completed its vision of a “super-connected hub of the MICE industry”.
With “Busan! Again” campaign, Busan will establish an internal and external consultation system and actively attract and organize small-scale VIP events and medium-to-large scale hybrid MICE events.
In addition, it will focus investment and support on the sustainability of Busan’s MICE industry. (ESG management).
They plan to organize information sessions and joint campaigns so that organizers and participants can take part in ESG management.
The Haeundae International Conference Complex (HAEVENUE) will improve the convenience of travel between integrated facilities by expanding accessibility, such as connecting environmentally friendly personal transportation, as a hub for MICE in Busan.
Several enhancements and support projects for HAEVENUE are pending.
From this year, the Busan MICE Alliance (BMA), an advisory body of MICE institutions and companies that aims to become a driving force of Busan MICE, will change drastically.
Previously, MICE-related companies, organizations and institutions located in Busan could join without any kind of process, but from 2022, the minimum verification criteria of actual operational capabilities, such as the ability to organize MICE-related events , must be satisfied. The reason for introducing the minimum verification process, such as evaluation and approval by the operating committee, is to strengthen practical BMA networking and create new synergies with domestic and foreign organizations related to MICE.
The MICE support program has also been strengthened to provide more practical benefits for organizers and participants in a pandemic situation. The programs revolve around three axes: △international conferences, corporate incentives and tourism. For international conferences, hybrid online and offline international conferences are also supported if more than 10% of the total number of participants participate offline. For corporate incentives and corporate conferences, up to 50 million won will be provided to attract and host an event. For tourism, up to 3 million won for actual expenses will be covered, which includes tour buses and interpreters for international conferences with 10 or more overseas attendees.
Some international conferences have already chosen Busan as their “optimal MICE destination”. The organizers of conferences postponed due to COVID-19, such as the 2022 General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) and the 2022 World Congress of the International Federation of Freight Forwarding Associations (FIATA), as well as conferences large-scale, including the Asian Patent Attorneys Association Council 2022 meeting and the International Combustion Engine Council (CIMAC) 2022 Congress have begun to prepare for the event in Busan in full swing.
IAU and FIATA World Congresses to be held in Busan in 2020 and 2021 (over 3,000 participants from 100 countries each) moved to a hybrid type event this year due to prolonged COVID-19.
In addition, seven major international conferences of more than 1,000 people are planned for Busan in 2022: the 18and IFSES World Endoscopic Surgery Congress, Asian Patent Attorneys Association (APAA) Council Meeting 2022 and International Combustion Engine Council Congress 2022.
A BTO official said, “As the landscape of the MICE industry at home and abroad has changed rapidly over the past three years of the COVID-19 crisis, there is a need to support not only infrastructure of conference and exhibition which can be used both online and offline, but also tourism resources such as Unique Venues. Entering the post-COVID-19 era in 2022, Busan will seize the opportunity to make it the first year of MICE innovation, ensuring the city emerges as one of the top MICE destinations in the world.
(Your stories: Bussan Tourism Organization)
