Expansion of Regional Tourism Governance: Ten Local Destination Management Organizations Selected, Including Seocheon and Yeongam

Up to Five Years of Government Funding for DMOs, Says Ministry and Korea Tourism Organization
First Introduction of "Regional-Type DMOs" for Inter-Regional Cooperation

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization announced on March 10 that they have newly selected local Destination Management & Marketing Organizations (DMOs) to establish regional tourism governance and drive sustainable tourism development.

Overview of the Korea Tourism Organization Headquarters Building

A DMO is an organization in which residents, the tourism industry, and local governments form a consultative body to jointly promote local tourism policies and marketing. It is a project aimed at developing tourism strategies led by local communities and creating a sustainable tourism ecosystem.

This year, two new basic DMOs have been selected: the Seocheon Foundation for Culture & Tourism and the Yeongam Foundation for Culture & Tourism. For the third year of support, two organizations have been chosen: the Gimje Rural Vitality Center and the Yeongdeok Foundation for Culture & Tourism. Including six existing organizations whose support has been extended, a total of ten basic DMOs will be operated this year.

The selected organizations will receive annual government funding ranging from 100 million to 200 million won depending on the stage of the project, and may operate the project for up to five years. However, after receiving support for the first two years following initial selection, continued support for the third year will be determined through a new round of applications.

This year, for the first time, a "regional-type DMO" has also been introduced to address broad tourism issues through cooperation among two or more local governments. The Pyeongchang County Tourism Council, which connects Pyeongchang, Hoengseong, Gangneung, and Donghae along the KTX transportation corridor, and the Chungbuk Cultural Foundation, which links Okcheon, Boeun, and Yeongdong as a wellness tourism belt, have been selected. Each of these two institutions will receive 400 million won this year to carry out inter-regional tourism cooperation projects.

To strengthen the foundation for DMO self-reliance, the Korea Tourism Organization plans to support promotions and marketing in connection with its main projects, and will also pursue the development of tourism content and the establishment of revenue-generating models.

Jeong Sunhee, Head of Regional Development at the Korea Tourism Organization, said, "The importance of revitalizing local areas and achieving balanced growth through tourism is growing," and added, "We will actively support the selected DMOs so that they can become successful models that invigorate local economies."

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