Asean-Korea youth workshop to highlight implications of digitalization

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN — The Asean-Korea Center has announced that it will hold the ‘2018 ASEAN-Korea Youth Network Workshop’ in Seoul, Korea and Manila, the Philippines from July 2-11. The 10-day workshop will see the participation of 70 youth from the 10 Asean member states, Korea, China, and Japan.

According to a press release, participants will attend lectures by experts on the implications of digitalization at different levels (international, regional, national, provincial) and in different sectors (politics and security, economy, society and culture), and visit digital centers and companies in Korea and the Philippines. They will also take part in cultural exchange and team-building activities.

The press release noted that the Asean participants were selected in cooperation with the Asean embassies in Korea, and the Chinese and Japanese participants were selected through consultation with the Asean-China Center and the Asean-Japan Center.

The Asean-Korea Youth Network Workshop has been held annually since 2012, and was organized under the theme of environment for the first five years. The workshop will be have the theme of science, technology and innovation (STI), and digitalization for the next five years, beginning this year.

The workshop will comprise the Korea program, from July 2-6, and the Philippines program from July 7-11.

The Korea program, organized with the Seoul National University Asia Center (SNUAC), comprises lectures on Asean and Korea relations, global trends in digitalization, and implications of digitalization on Korea and Asean.

Participants will also meet the Mayor of Seoul City Park Won-soon, who adopted digital technology to run the city, and visit Samsung D’Light, Digital Media City, and VR Theme Park to experience the effects of digitalization in Korea. They will also experience the traditional Korean culture.

The Philippines program, organized with the University of the Philippines Asian Center, will allow participants to visit Acudeen, a FinTech company that partners with small and medium enterprises (SMEs), streamlining their payment systems, and Rappler, a social news network operating in the Philippines and Indonesia.

Participants will also learn about entrepreneurship and innovation from companies such as QBO Innovation Hub and Google, visit cultural heritages and experience the traditional culture.

They will also give team presentations on a policy proposal for digitalization and meet the Korean Ambassador to the Philippines Han Dong-man.

Secretary General of the Asean-Korea Center Lee Hyuk said, “Young people below 35 represent 65 per cent of Asean’s total population.

“They are leaders in digitalization with an extensive usage of smartphones and strong technological adaptability.”

He added, “I hope that both programs will give momentum for the participating youth to contribute to the successful digitalization and mutual prosperity in East Asia.”