Governor Nam scheduled to visit China and Vietnam from March 31 to April 5

Expected to offer province’s full support in FTA utilization including certification
of origins for small and medium businesses in Gyeonggi Province

Governor Nam to enhance economic and trade cooperation through meetings
with local government officials

◇ Gyeonggi Province Governor Nam Kyung-pil visits China and Vietnam during a six-day mission from March 31 to April 5 to explore export opportunities and expand strategic markets by taking full advantage of the Korea-China and Korea-Vietnam FTAs with both agreements reaching 100 days since ratification. ⓒ Gyeonggi Provincial Government

Gyeonggi Province Governor Nam
Kyung-pil visits China and Vietnam on a six-day mission from March 31 to April
5. He is travelling to the two nations on an economic mission to explore export
opportunities and expand strategic markets by taking full advantage of the
Korea-China and Korea-Vietnam FTAs which reached the 100-day mark since ratification.
  

In terms of export
destinations for Gyeonggi Province, China and Vietnam respectively rank first
and third. With the Korea-China FTA and Korea-Vietnam FTA being ratified
simultaneously this past December 20, they have become the largest export
markets for the province.  

Governor Nam Kyung-pil plans
to open Gyeonggi Business Centers (GBC) in Guangzhou, China, and Ho Chi Minh,
Vietnam, during his trip. This is part of Gyeonggi Province’s efforts to support to
small and medium business initiatives in both regions.  

The GBC network provides
market information and supports the sale of goods and services on behalf of
small and medium companies in Gyeonggi Province that experience difficulties
expanding overseas. At present, there are six GBCs in five countries including
Los Angeles (United States), Shanghai and Shenyang (China), Moscow (Russia),
Mumbai (India), and Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia). The provincial government has establish
additional GBCs in Chongqing (China), Dubai (Middle East) as well as Iran and
Germany. 

Governor Nam will meet with
exporting companies from Gyeonggi Province and local entrepreneurs after
opening GBCs in both regions to take full advantage of the FTAs including the
provision of support for certification of origins and identifying means by
which to increase business cooperation. The governor is also expected to
declare that Gyeonggi Province will lead economic and trade cooperation between
Korea-China and Korea-ASEAN. 

Additionally, Governor Nam is
expected to meet with key local officials and strengthen cooperative ties in commerce
and trade.  

First, the governor will visit
Guangdong Province (a sister province of Gyeonggi Province) in China on March
31 to meet Governor Zhu Xiaodan and discuss specific means of cooperation
following the ratification of the Korea-China FTA. Sources in the provincial government
indicated that the two governors will reach an agreement to enhance exchange
and cooperation between Gyeonggi Province and Guangdong Province so as to
increase overall cooperation in cutting-edge industries, trade investment,
tourism, and personnel exchanges.  

Following his visit to China,
Governor Nam will travel to Vietnam, a country to which exports by Korean
companies are increasing at the highest rate despite poor overall performance
in exports.   

Governor Nam will meet the
Vietnamese Minister of Welfare on April 2 to discuss development and
cooperation plans for the medical industries in both countries. The governor will
also visit Vietnam’s 175 Military Hospital which has a medical
cooperation agreement with a Korean university hospital. These efforts are
expected to enhance cooperation in health and medicine between Gyeonggi
Province and Vietnam.  

Moreover, the governor will
visit Samsung Electronics’ mobile phone factory in Bac Ninh Province near
Hanoi on April 4 to review the difficulties the company experiences and discuss
strategies to increase the market for products made by Korean corporations.
Following his visit to Bac Ninh, Governor Nam will travel to Binh Phuoc
Province, a major industrial region near Hanoi, to share Gyeonggi Province’s experiences in
developing ‘new
towns’
as well as industrial complexes and discuss cooperative measures. 

A Gyeonggi Province official
said, “The
governor’s visit
to China and Vietnam is part of economic diplomacy aimed at overcoming the
slowdown in exports because of the changing environment, both domestically and
internationally, and to maximize business opportunities in China and Vietnam
which are the largest export markets for Gyeonggi Province by taking full
advantage of the Korea-China and Korea-Vietnam FTAs.” The official added, “We expect the visit to
play an important role in helping Gyeonggi Province’s small and medium
businesses expand into overseas markets in the future.”

ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News | Lee Jun-kyun eyekle@hanmail.net 

http://gnews.gg.go.kr/news/news_detail.asp?number=201603291046437055C052&s_code=C052