The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said Tuesday that Minister Choi Hwi-young will attend the 13th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Tourism Ministerial Meeting, to be held in Macau on Thursday, as South Korea's representative. Under the theme "Strengthening Digital Innovation and Cooperation: Harnessing Tourism for the Asia-Pacific Community," tourism ministers and delegations from APEC's 21 member economies, totaling about 100 participants, will attend and plan to adopt a joint declaration on tourism cooperation for shared prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region.
According to the ministry, Choi will attend the plenary session, receive reports on the activities of the APEC Tourism Working Group (TWG), and review the adoption of the joint declaration. In particular, during the ministerial discussion under the theme "Digital Innovation for the Development of the Tourism Industry within the APEC Region," he will introduce Korea's innovative tourism policies and lead regional cooperation. These include "AI-based tourism innovation technology research and development (R&D)," such as a tourism enterprise innovation voucher support program and AI agent-based tourism service technology; the "Tourism Plus-Tech project," which identifies companies with innovative technologies applicable to the tourism industry; and the "AI-based regional tourism leading project," a collaboration among local governments, businesses, and academia.
In addition, on the occasion of this meeting, Choi has proposed new initiatives to China and Japan to expand tourism. He will also hold consecutive bilateral meetings with key Southeast Asian partner countries, including Indonesian Tourism Minister Widiyanti Putri Wardhana and Vietnamese Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Lam Thi Phuong Thanh, to discuss practical cooperation measures for boosting tourism exchange, such as opportunities for visa relaxation.
As vice-chair of the APEC Tourism Working Group (TWG) meeting, Korea has been contributing to cooperation among members in line with four priorities to implement the post-COVID-19 tourism recovery strategic plan: responding to digital transformation, developing human resources, promoting travel and strengthening competitiveness, and developing a sustainable and inclusive tourism economy.
"This meeting is an important occasion to seek cooperation measures for the sustainable growth of the tourism industry within the APEC region amid the contemporary challenge of digital transformation," Minister Choi said. "We will use it as an opportunity to share Korea's innovative tourism policy cases, and through bilateral cooperation with major countries, to enhance the convenience of overseas travel for our citizens and attract more foreign tourists," the ministry conveyed.
The APEC Tourism Ministerial Meeting was established in 2000 through Korea's leading initiative. It currently operates as a consultative body where tourism ministers from 21 member economies gather to discuss the development of the regional tourism industry, and it is held once every two years. At the 2024 APEC Tourism Ministerial Meeting in Peru, then-Vice Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Jang Mi-ran attended, but this time Minister Choi will participate in person.
