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IFEZ Activities Driving Innovative Growth
  • Date 2024-12-28
  • Hit 22

IFEZ Activities

Driving Innovative Growth 


IFEZ is doing its best to become a global city of the future through diverse investment-attraction activities. 

Take a look at IFEZ’s activities that are leading innovative growth.




Korea-China Future Advanced Industry Forum Initiates Mutual Cooperation in Four Areas

On November 14, the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority (IFEZA) hosted the Korea-China Future Advanced Industry Forum at Songdo Convensia. The event was organized by the IFEZA and the Chinese Embassy in Korea, with joint sponsorship from the Policy Evaluation Research Institute (PERI), Pangoal Institution (China), Incheon Technopark, and TMT POST. Given Korea and China’s geographical proximity, Incheon has been engaged in various exchanges with China since its designation as a pilot city for the Korea-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The IFEZA plans to use this forum to build momentum toward discovering new investment opportunities through China. Additionally, it is working on expanding its economic free zones, with a focus on developing a “Global Advanced Industry Complex” in the southern part of Ganghwa-gun. To achieve this, the forum was designed to bring together leading companies in both countries from the four sectors of ▲bio & healthcare, ▲mobility & automotive, ▲green energy, and ▲smart logistics, aiming to create practical business opportunities, discover demand for trade and investment between Korea and China, and hold in-depth discussions and networking sessions for follow-up business. Speaking about the event, IFEZ Commissioner Yun Won-sok said, “I hope this forum will become a good starting point for building a new partnership between Korea and China in the four major high-tech industries.”




IFEZ Participates in the K-UAM Confex for Aviation and Smart Manufacturing Innovators

The Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority (IFEZA) announced its participation in the “2024 K-UAM Confex,” held over the course of two days at Paradise City (beginning on October 31), operating a special exhibition for the “IFEZ Aviation & Smart Manufacturing Supply Chain.” (*UAM stands for ‘Urban Air Mobility System’, using drones or personal aircrafts to carry people and cargo.) Now in its fourth year, the K-UAM Confex, which began in 2021, offers a special opportunity to experience exhibitions from global UAM companies and institutions alongside conferences featuring top industry experts. To build a supply chain between demanders and suppliers in the aviation and smart manufacturing industries, the conference had the IFEZA select 10 innovative companies, including H3R, Robigos, L-Piece, Darwin Fiction, FineVT, IPT, Taeyoung Optical, YongBAT, VSpace, and PalNetworks, to form the IFEZ Aviation & Smart Manufacturing Supply Chain Special Hall. Meanwhile, the event will continue to serve as a platform for cooperation among companies in the aviation and smart manufacturing fields to discuss supply and demand, and it will help share various bits of information in efforts to build a supply chain.



IFEZ Embarks on Reforming the 

Regulations on EPS for Foreign Workers

IFEZ has initiated regulatory reform measures to improve the business environments for tenants and to help them expand their enterprises. On November 5, at the 31st National Council of the Commissioners of the Free Economic Zones, held at G-Tower in Songdo International City, IFEZ (under Commissioner Yun Won-sok) proposed measures to ease the Foreigners Employment Permit System (EPS) for foreign-invested companies in FEZs. The EPS, which has been in effect for 20 years, is a government-administered labor system for foreign workers with non-professional employment visas (E-9), in accordance with the “ACT ON THE EMPLOYMENT OF FOREIGN WORKERS.” However, under the current EPS, “manufacturing enterprises with more than 300 full-time employees (or more than KRW 8 billion in capital) and medium-sized enterprises located in the metropolitan area” are prohibited from hiring foreigners, meaning IFEZ residents are still facing labor shortages. Accordingly, the IFEZA called for an amendment that would allow foreign-invested companies in FEZs to hire workers with non-professional employment visas (E-9), regardless of the size of the company. In response, the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy (MOTIE) stated that it would open the dialogue to listen to the difficulties and requests for cooperation from IFEZs across the country in order to seek out improvement measures for the submitted agenda, and that it would reflect these measures in consultations with relevant ministries.


The Korea Serious Game Institute (KGSI) Launches as a 

Research Hub for Serious Games

The industry-academia collaboration ecosystem at Incheon Global Campus (IGC) will soon be strengthened. The Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority (IFEZA), led by Commissioner Yun Won-sok, has announced the official opening of the Korea Serious Game Institute (KSGI) at George Mason University Korea. The institute will now begin full-scale operations from its location on the 3rd floor of George Mason University Korea, within Incheon Global Campus. KSGI aims to drive innovation in the gaming industry, focusing on pioneering innovative research in serious games that combine games with medical simulation and VR/AR-based diagnostic and training solutions. The institute is expected to enhance the application of serious games through global partnerships and technological exchanges while playing an innovative role in advancing Incheon’s gaming industry. 



IFEZ Holds ‘K-BioLab Hub Songdo Networking Day’

IFEZ (Commissioner Yoon Won-seok) announced that it had held the “K-BioLab Hub Songdo Networking Day” on November 28 at Gyeongwonjae Ambassador Incheon. The K-BioLab Hub Promotion Team (hereinafter referred to as the “Promotion Team”), which co-hosted the event with IFEZ, is an organization under the Korea Technology and Information Promotion Agency for SMEs (TIPA). It was established earlier this year to manage the operations of K-Bio, set to be built in Songdo International City. The event featured an introduction to the K-BioLab Hub project, details on pilot programs set to launch in 2025, strategies for open innovation among Songdo’s resident companies and startups, an overview of investment trends in the biotech ecosystem by domestic venture capital firms, and networking opportunities for participants. Meanwhile, the K-BioLab Hub is a specialized support facility designed to nurture global pharmaceutical and biotech startups by offering office space, testing equipment and facilities, aid programs, mentoring services, etc. (※ The Ministry of SMEs and Startups selected Incheon in July 2021 in the “Competition for Candidate Sites to Build the K-BioLab Hub.”)


IFEZ Hosts ‘5th IFEZ Kimchi-Making Event for Sharing Love’

On December 4, IFEZ (Commissioner Yun Won-sok) hosted the “5th IFEZ Kimchi Making Event for Sharing Love,” targeting foreigners at the IFEZ Global Center in Songdo International City. This event offered foreigners the opportunity to experience Korea’s gimjang (kimchi-making for the winter) culture and to engage in sharing love with the local community. The kimchi made with great care by 30 foreign participants was delivered to 120 households with elderly individuals living alone and receiving free meals through the Yeonsu-gu Senior Welfare Center. This kimchi-making event allowed foreigners to deepen their understanding of Korean culture while contributing to sharing love with the local community. “The IFEZA will continue to push forward a variety of programs that promote Korean culture and practice social sharing,” said Commissioner Yun Won-sok, who attended the event.




Advisory Meeting Organized by the MOTIE to Discuss Designating Southern Ganghwa as a Free Economic Zone by 2025

IFEZ has taken the first step toward a large-scale project to strengthen Incheon’s global competitiveness and build the grounds for future national growth. It also announced that the development plan proposal for the “Ganghwa International City Project” was submitted to the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy (MOTIE) on December 3 in order to consult on designating the southern part of Ganghwa as a Free Economic Zone. In response, the proposal will be discussed by Incheon City and the IFEZA at the “Free Economic Zone Advisory Meeting” organized by the MOTIE on December 17. (*The advisory meeting organized by the MOTIE is in accordance with Article 51 of the “Guidelines for Free Economic Zone Development” and is intended to gather advice from the MOTIE on the proposal (draft) for the Ganghwa International City Project.) Meanwhile, the advisory meeting marks the first official step toward designating the southern part of Ganghwa as a Free Economic Zone.



The IFEZA Hosts Opening Ceremony for 

Songdo 6 & 8 Districts Landmark

The Songdo 6 & 8 Districts infrastructure project, which was carried out in three phases, has been completed after 10 years (2014-2024), paving the way for the development of Songdo International City. On the afternoon of the 19th, IFEZ, led by Commissioner Yun Won-sok, held a landmark opening ceremony at 401 Songdo-dong, Yeonsu-gu, also attended by Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok and Incheon City Council Chairman Jeong Hae-gwon. The landmark connecting the Aam Logistics Complex (District 9) and the International Business District (District 3) was completed as the third and final phase of the Songdo 6 & 8 Districts infrastructure project, with this phase beginning in July 2020 and being finalized in October 2024, taking four years and three months. Following the completion of Phase 1 (which included a 6.8-km road) in May 2017 and Phase 2 (consisting of a 5.7-km road) in September 2021, Phase 3 included the completion of 15 roads (6.7 km), such as #08 the Gwang-2-14 Line, one bridge (396-54 Songdo-dong), and various infrastructural elements, including water supply, stormwater, and sewage systems and landscaping.



The IFEZA Holds Practical Training for Vaccine and Biopharmaceutical Production Processes

The Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority (IFEZA), led by Commissioner Yun Won-sok, and the Ministry of Health and Welfare will conduct a session of “Vaccine and Biopharmaceutical Production Process Practical Training” over the course of four weeks, running from November 11 to December 6, at Yonsei University K-NIBRT in Songdo. This practical training course represents a collaborative effort between South Korea, known as a global bio workforce training hub, and the World Health Organization (WHO), and it is aimed at strengthening vaccine-production capacities for low- and middle-income countries. The program will involve 59 experts from 27 countries, selected through a joint selection committee between the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the WHO. 



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