Korea Plays Active
Role in WTO
MCT Minister Chung presides over the 75th WTO Executive Council Meeting

The governing body of the World Tourism Organization (WTO) has reelected current Secretary-General Francesco Frangialli for a further four-year term.
The WTO Executive Council Meeting was presided over by Korean Minister of Culture and Tourism Chung Dong-chea, chairman of the gathering, on June 13-14, with 50 ministers and vice ministers from the WTO Executive Council member countries, including France, Spain, Italy and Brazil, participating. Bulgarian Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg was also present.
Frangialli competed against Tanya Abrahamse of South Africa and Dimitar Hadjiniolov of Bulgaria, but Frangialli won 20 of the 28 votes cast at the 75th WTO Executive Council Meeting, at the Bulgarian Black seat resort town of Nessebar, held on June 13.
Frangialli will be approved as WTO secretary-general for a third term from Jan.1, 2006 until the end of 2009 by the WTO General Assembly, which opens on Nov. 25 in Dakar, Senegal. In the past, the General Assembly has always accepted the recommendation of the Executive Council. Fragialli joined WTO as deputy secretary-general in 1990 and replaced Antonio Enriquez Savignac ad interim from September 1996 before being elected secretary-general in 1997. He was reelected in 2001.
In particular, the organization and activities of WTO's ST-EP Initiative, headquartered in Korea, which extends tourism's contribution to poverty alleviation through sustainable development, was given a good reception by the member countries, which appreciated Korea's initiative and support for the cause, during the meeting. The ST-EP Initiative, established in Seoul in 2004 in accordance with an agreement with the WTO and the Korean Ministry of Culture and Tourism, is headquartered in Seoul. The outcome of the activities by the ST-EP Initiative was briefed to the Executive Council Meeting, which decided to present the articles of the initiative for approval from the WTO General Assembly slated for November in Senegal.
The WTO program on supporting the recovery of tsunami victim countries's tourism resources, initially proposed by Korea, was also reported to the meeting and given a good reception. Korea, as the WTO Executive Council chairman country, convened an emergency WTO Executive Council meeting early this year to approve programs designed to support the rehabilitation of tourism resources, damaged by earthquakes and subsequent tsunami. Korea provided $500,000 to the WTO for the recovery of the damaged areas.
The meeting also discussed such topics as the follow-up measures on inclusion of the WTO as specialized agency of the United Nations and 2006-2007 business plan. nw

Korean Minister of Culture and Tourism Chung Dong-chea (2nd from right) presides over the WTO Executive Council Meeting in Nessebar, Bulgaria, June 13-14 as Bulgarian Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg (center) looked.