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| Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon speaks during an environmental conference for young adults held at Seoul City Hall, July 26. Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government |
By Ko Dong-hwan
Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon heads to Singapore and Ho Chi Minh City on Friday for a seven-day trip to strengthen the Korean capital's ties with Southeast Asian cities.
The mayor, who is in his second term in office, will first visit Singapore to take part in the World Cities Summit (WCS), a gathering of city mayors, politicians, economists and scholars from across the world to discuss how to make hospitable and sustainable cities and form international partnerships to accomplish that. The summit is held from July 30 to Aug. 1.
The International Relations Division under the city government's Public Communication Bureau, said Thursday that Oh will introduce representatives, from some 90 cities across the world to Seoul's leading policies including digital transformation and carbon neutralization. He will also attend the World Cities Summit Mayors Forum, a sideline event held in person for the first time in three years, to promote Seoul city.
Oh, while in Singapore, is expected to build up Seoul's business partnerships with the Southeast Asian city-state. The mayor has been publicly expressing an interest in Singapore's effective policies including public housing, urban development and smart healthcare, according to the international relations division. Furthermore, Singapore is one of the city-states in the world that has carried out the most extensive exchanges of manpower and policies with Seoul.
Oh will visit Kampung Admiralty, Singapore's first integrated public development that brought together state facilities and services under one roof, and Marina One, a mixed-use development in downtown Singapore, to study the two locations and learn about best-practice development measures. The mayor is also expected to meet Singapore's key officials, including Desmond Lee, a Singaporean politician who currently serves as the city-state's minister of national development.
From Aug. 2 until 3, Oh will be in Ho Chi Minh City to look for opportunities for talented professionals and companies seeking to do business in Korea.
"Vietnam is a real opportunity market," said an official from the international relations division. "Despite the global recession that went on for the past two years due to COVID-19, the country accomplished net economic growth two years in a row. It's one of the countries where the most Korean firms, from startups to large-size firms, are engaged businesses overseas."
Ho Chi Minh City and Seoul are already bound by a business alliance so to speak. In May 2021, the Vietnamese city introduced Seoul Startup Hub Ho Chi Minh, an outpost of the Seoul city government, set up to help Korean local startups lay the foundations necessary for their expansion into overseas markets via support from international public agencies.
While in the city, Oh is expected to meet Phan Van Mai, the chairman of the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City, to discuss the two cities' future bilateral ties. One of Oh's agendas on the table with Phan is seeking opportunities for Korean high-tech startups to venture into Vietnam.
Oh will also meet Korean entrepreneurs in Vietnam, including those at Saigon Hi-Tech Park, a business cluster in Ho Chi Minh City housing high-tech firms, as well as some 40 Korean businessmen in the country.
Promoting tourism in Seoul is going to be Oh's other key agenda in Vietnam. At various local events, Oh will talk about some of the key changes in Seoul, including the opening of the former presidential office known as Cheong Wa Dae to the public and the renovation of Gwanghwamun Square in downtown Seoul, which is due for completion by early August.
Calling Singapore and Ho Chi Minh City "ASEAN strategic cities," Oh said he was determined to tap into the two cities to strengthen ties with Seoul and help Korean firms expand overseas and secure future food sources and jobs.
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