President Elevates National Tourism Strategy Meeting to Enhance Implementation

by KI SU JEONG Posted : July 2, 2026, 15:00Updated : July 2, 2026, 15:00
President Lee Jae-myung poses for a group photo with attendees at the expanded National Tourism Strategy Meeting held at the Blue House on the 25th. From left: Lee Jin-soo, Deputy Minister of Justice; Koo Yun-cheol, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance; Kim Min-seok, Prime Minister; Lee Boo-jin, Chair of the Korea Visit Year Committee; President Lee; Alberto Mondi, Vice Chairman of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Korea; Kim Yoon-deok, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport; Choi Hwi-young, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism; Kim Sung-beom, Acting Minister of Oceans and Fisheries.
President Lee Jae-myung poses for a group photo with attendees at the expanded National Tourism Strategy Meeting held at the Blue House on the 25th. (From left) Lee Jin-soo, Deputy Minister of Justice; Koo Yun-cheol, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance; Kim Min-seok, Prime Minister; Lee Boo-jin, Chair of the Korea Visit Year Committee; President Lee; Alberto Mondi, Vice Chairman of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Korea; Kim Yoon-deok, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport; Choi Hwi-young, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism; Kim Sung-beom, Acting Minister of Oceans and Fisheries. [Photo=Yonhap News]

A meeting will be held to discuss improvements to the operational system and regulations of the National Tourism Strategy Meeting, which has been elevated to a presidential-level body. This marks the beginning of serious discussions aimed at establishing a governance framework for tourism policy that reflects the meeting's enhanced status.

The National Assembly Tourism Industry Forum announced on July 2 that it will host the 6th Tourism Policy Seminar on July 7 at 10 a.m. in the third meeting room of the National Assembly Members' Hall, focusing on the theme "Exploring New Paradigms for the National Tourism Strategy Meeting Led by the President." The seminar is co-hosted by lawmakers Min Byung-deok and Jo Gye-won from the Democratic Party and Kim Seok-ki from the People Power Party, with support from Hanyang University’s Tourism Research Institute.

◆ Presidential Elevation... Overhauling the Tourism Policy Implementation System

This seminar is organized in response to the recent amendment of the Tourism Basic Act, which has elevated the National Tourism Strategy Meeting to a presidential-level body and introduced new functions for evaluating tourism policy performance and feedback mechanisms.

The seminar's background stems from the recognition that to function effectively as a practical policy coordination body for government-wide tourism policies, it is essential to refine both the operational system and collaboration framework.

Key discussions will focus on institutional improvements to strengthen the role of the National Tourism Strategy Meeting and redesign the tourism policy implementation system.

◆ Proposal for a Korean-style Tourism Governance Model

The keynote presentation will be delivered by Lee Hoon, Dean of the College of Social Sciences at Hanyang University and a private co-representative of the National Assembly Tourism Industry Forum.

Lee will propose the establishment of a tourism committee and operational plans for preliminary working meetings, focusing on the theme "Paradigm Shift in the National Tourism Strategy Meeting: Redesigning the Korean Tourism Policy System." He will also present a governance model aimed at enhancing the policy execution capacity of the National Tourism Strategy Meeting through improvements in key performance indicators (KPIs) and the establishment of a feedback system, while comparing and analyzing international tourism policy governance cases, including those from Japan, for domestic application.

◆ Collaboration Among Industry, Academia, and Government to Enhance Implementation

The designated discussion will be moderated by Jo Kwang-ik, Vice President of the Korean Tourism Society.

Participants in the discussion will include Kang Jeong-won, Director of the Tourism Policy Division at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism; Park Jeong-rok, former Executive Vice President of the Seoul Tourism Association; Park Jong-dal, Executive Vice President of the Korea Tourism Association; Bae Sang-min, President of the Korea Tourism Startup Association; and Park Chang-hwan, a professor at the National Kyungpook University.

The discussion will center on the role and operational system of the National Tourism Strategy Meeting, strengthening intergovernmental cooperation, and enhancing implementation capacity in the policy promotion process.

The National Assembly Tourism Industry Forum expects that this seminar will provide an opportunity for the government, National Assembly, tourism industry, and academia to collaboratively explore the operational direction of the National Tourism Strategy Meeting and establish an effective tourism policy implementation system.

In particular, the elevation of the National Tourism Strategy Meeting to a presidential level is seen as a significant first step in establishing it as a control tower for tourism policy that leads interdepartmental collaboration and policy coordination.



* This article has been translated by AI.