'Myce Mecca Songdo'... Incheon City Selected for International Conference Complex District Revitalization Contest for 4 Consecutive Years

Songdo International Conference Complex District
[Photo by Incheon City]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] Incheon City has been selected for the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's international conference complex district revitalization project for four consecutive years.

The city and Incheon Tourism Organization announced on the 10th that they secured 510 million KRW in national funding after being selected for the '2022 International Conference Complex District Revitalization Support Project' competition.

Since the designation of Songdo International Conference Complex District (covering 2.98㎢ around Songdo Convensia) as the first nationwide in 2018, Incheon City has been selected for the international conference complex district revitalization project for four consecutive years from 2019 to this year.

The international conference complex district is designated to strengthen the brand and competitiveness of the host city by clustering related facilities such as hotels, shopping, and performances centered around a convention center. There are five such districts including Incheon, Busan, Daegu, Gwangju, and Goyang in Gyeonggi Province.

Incheon City has invested 2.8 billion KRW in this project up to last year to solidify its position as an international MICE city.

In particular, last year, as part of the meeting technology support project reflecting MICE trends, virtual studios, 3D online conference platforms, and hologram theaters were established. Utilizing these, digital content was produced and supported for various events such as the 'UNESCO Learning City International Conference' held in November last year.

Efforts were also made to strengthen competitiveness by linking clustered facilities such as convention centers, hotels, and shopping malls within the complex district.

Events to boost popularity were held using widely known content such as Squid Game, and cooperation measures were sought, including supporting quarantine for MICE events held in the complex district to overcome COVID-19.

In 2018, the 2.98㎢ area around Incheon Songdo Convensia was designated as the nation's first international conference complex district. [Provided by Incheon City]

This year, with a budget of 1.02 billion KRW including national funding, plans include ▲developing the Songdo International Conference Complex District brand and joint marketing ▲creating a smart tourism environment for MICE organizers and participants ▲fostering MICE businesses and establishing a talent development hub within the complex district ▲developing programs linked to local culture and tourism resources ▲and building a 360° VR of the professional conference facility Songdo Convensia.

An Incheon City official stated, "This year, we plan to focus on realizing sustainable MICE considering environment, local community, communication, and participation; improving participant convenience using mobile-based smart technology; and strengthening MICE capabilities and competitiveness through talent development," adding, "It will be a turning point for Incheon City to leap forward as an international MICE hub city in the post-COVID endemic era."

Meanwhile, Incheon City established the 'Five-Year Plan for the Development and Promotion of the International Conference Complex District' in 2018, focusing on creating a MICE industry ecosystem and infrastructure, and has been promoting the complex district project.

Based on the accumulated international MICE experience and the establishment of the international complex district, Incheon plans to accelerate preparations to host the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) Summit in 2025, which has been confirmed to be held in Korea.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.