Korea Tourism Organization Signs MOU to Expand Tourism Business Cooperation with Bahrain

Special Economic Delegation Including Major Bahraini Companies Visits Korea

The Korea Tourism Organization (hereinafter referred to as the Organization) announced on the 14th that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA) to expand tourism exchanges and cooperation between tourism companies of Korea and Bahrain.

On the 13th, Lee Jae-hwan, Vice President of the Korea Tourism Organization (left), and Nasser Kaedi, President of the Bahrain Tourism Exhibition Authority (right), attended the business agreement ceremony to expand tourism exchange and cooperation between Korea and Bahrain.
[Photo by Korea Tourism Organization]

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Organization have been promoting various projects since President Yoon Seok-yeol's visit to the United Arab Emirates in January to create a second Middle East boom in the cultural tourism sector and to support the entry of K-tourism companies into the Middle Eastern market. The Organization explained that this agreement is highly significant as it opens the door for tourism exchanges and cooperation between tourism companies with Bahrain, one of the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) member countries.

To achieve concrete results from the MOU, the Organization also supported domestic tourism companies in entering the Bahrain market and attracting investment. On the 11th, a B2G (Business to Government) consultation meeting was held between companies representing the domestic aviation, hotel, and travel industries and the Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority. Additionally, to attract investment from Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat in domestic tourism companies, the Organization invited Nasser Quedi, President of the Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority, to tour the Organization’s HiKR exhibition hall and held discussions with Lee Jae-hwan, Vice President of the Organization, regarding the entry of Korean tourism companies into the Middle Eastern market.

On the 13th, through a luncheon with Abdullah bin Adel Fakhro, Bahrain’s Minister of Industry and Commerce and a director of the sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat, who led a special economic delegation visiting Korea for the first time in 11 years since Crown Prince Salman of Bahrain’s official visit in 2012, multifaceted efforts were made to draw the Bahrain government’s interest and support for domestic tourism companies.

Bahrain is currently undertaking state-led mega projects in the tourism sector, such as the Jumeirah Resort and South City development. The Organization analyzed that these conditions are favorable for domestic tourism companies to demonstrate their capabilities, and the sovereign wealth fund’s investment capacity is also relatively strong.

Lee Jae-hwan, Vice President of the Korea Tourism Organization, stated, "To realize the cultural tourism achievements of the President’s UAE visit early, we will spare no effort to provide full support for expanding cooperation between Korean and Bahraini tourism companies through supporting Korean tourism companies’ entry into the Bahrain and GCC markets and attracting investment." He added, "This is expected to expand not only in the tourism sector but also in enhancing exchanges at a strategic level of cultural diplomacy mediated by digital transformation and eco-friendliness in the GCC tourism industry."

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