A South African press team was invited by the Korea Foundation for International Cultural Exchange (KOFICE Chairperson: Young-hoon Kim, www.kofice.or.kr) to visit Korea from April 25 to May 1 to cover Korea’s experiences and involvement as the host of the World Cup 2002 along with its development in sports and culture. This visit was requested by the press who expressed their interests to learn the knowhow’s behind the success of Korea during the World Cup 2002 that created a “nationwide street cheering.” Korea came 4th in the tournament and proved itself as the Asia’s best in football.

The invited press team is from South Africa’s commercial broadcaster, e.TV. They will broadcast Korea’s experiences during World Cup 2002 to the South African viewers and celebrate Korea’s national image.

During their stay, they will visit Korea Football Association, Seoul World Cup Stadium, World Cup 2002 PR center and Suwon World Cup Stadium and look into World Cup 2002. They will also cover Korea’s economic and cultural development and broadcast the contents in South Africa in time for the World Cup. To meet this end, they will directly experience KTX-Sancheon, which is one of Korea’s advanced technologies and is a leader in the world market. They will also visit KBS to experience Korea’s IT power and capture the present status of DMB broadcasting. Lastly, they will do some stopovers in the Institute of Korea Traditional Food, Gyeongbukgung, Nanta Theater and Bulguksa-Seokgulam in Gyeongju and experience Korean traditional culture.

KOFICE has been inviting foreign opinion leaders since 2005 to promote the correct understanding of Korean culture and propel cultural exchange between Korea and other countries. It enhances and publicizes Korea’s national image by boosting mutual understanding and interaction through human resources exchange with influential media bodies in Asia and the world.