​

The Cultural Heritage Administration (Administrator Choi Eung-chon) is holding the Inauguration ceremony and 1^st Working Committee Meeting for the ‘ASEAN-ROK Cultural Heritage Cooperation (hereinafter referred to as ‘Working Committee’)’ at the Millennium Hilton Hotel in Seoul on 10-11 November 2022, in which cultural heritage officials from ten ASEAN member states are expected to participate.

*ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations): An intergovernmental organization of ten countries, consisting of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Korean Government, recognizing the importance of cultural heritage, which is a common asset of mankind and a driving force for sustainable development, proposed the establishment of an ASEAN-Korea Heritage Cooperation Organisation at the Special AMCA Plus ROK Meeting in 2019 and the 21st ASEAN-ROK Summit in 2020. The Working Committee is a preliminary step in the establishment of the ASEAN-Korea Cultural Heritage Cooperation Organisation. It will be a platform to discuss the direction and major issues for the establishment of future cooperation organisation between the Republic of Korea and ASEAN member states.

For the inauguration ceremony, in addition to the 24 members of the Working Committee, which consists of the representatives from the Republic of Korea, ten ASEAN member states, and the ASEAN Secretariat, there will be representatives from the ASEAN embassies in Korea and other ASEAN-related organisations, making the number of participants to 60 people in total. The inauguration ceremony started with an opening speech from the Aministrator, followed by a keynote presentation by the former ROK Ambassador to Indonesia Kim Young-sun, who emphasised the importance of ASEAN-ROK cultural heritage cooperation, and a presentation by the Cultural Heritage Administration on the operation plan of the working committee, etc.

Along with the inauguration ceremony, the first Working Committee Meeting for ASEAN-ROK Cultural Heritage Cooperation will take place for two days on 10-11 November. At this meeting, the strategic direction and priority tasks for the ASEAN-ROK cultural heritage cooperation will be discussed and reviewed through the △ ASEAN-ROK cultural heritage cooperation status and demand analysis, △ Presentation of the status of cultural heritage protection and suggestions for cooperation areas by each ASEAN member state, as well as △ ASEAN-ROK cultural heritage joint cooperation area discussions. Additionally, the scope of cooperation will be gradually expanded to include both, cultural and natural heritage.

The Cultural Heritage Administration hope that the Working Committee Meeting will develop and promote cultural heritage pilot projects between the Republic of Korea and ASEAN so that the cooperation could lead to further practical actions. As a result, it is expected to lay a foundation for the establishment of an ASEAN-Korea Heritage Cooperation Organisation by 2024 by setting a strategy and developing detailed projects for ASEAN-ROK joint cultural and natural heritage cooperation.