Korea to Host World Congress
on Safety & Health at Work

KOSHA president committed to successfully hosting of the "Safety Olympics"

The one-year countdown for Korea's playing host at the XVIII World Congress on Safety and Health at Work begins on June 29. The congress, scheduled to get underway at the COEX in Seoul from June 29 through July 2, 2008 is billed as the "Safety Olympics,"an international mega-congress to attract all attention from safety and health experts and businesspeople in the field around the world.
Korea's hosting the XVIII World Congress is expected not only to raise Korea's profile as a member country of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), but also to solidify its standing as a hub state of the occupational safety and health field in the Northeast Asian region, officials of the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency (KOSHA), one of the three Congress organizers, said. The two other Congress organizers are the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the International Social Security Association (ISSA).
The congress is also likely to serve as a good opportunity to publicize Korea's occupational safety and health levels across the world, they said.
The KOSHA said it is committed to ensuring the success of the Congress. In particular, it said the XVIII World Congress will offer safety and health programs harmonizing with the Korean culture and traditions so that Congress participants'visit to Korea will have unforgettable memories of Korea.
The XVIII World Congress will coincide with the 24th Asia-Pacific Occupational Safety & Health Organization (APOSHO) Annual General Meeting to form an extravaganza world conference of occupational health & safety officials.
ParK Kil-sang, chairman of the International Organizing Committee of the XVIII World Congress and president of the KOSHA, said, "The 2008 World Congress will be the second one held in Asia following the 1993 World Congress in India, and Korea is hoped to emerge as a fully-fledged center of occupational safety and health field by successfully hosting the 2008 World Congress.
Under the motto "Safety and Health at Work: A Societal Responsibility,"the 2008 World Congress will discuss safety topics like strategies and programs of safety and health for the future, impact on changes in working conditions on workers'protection, new challenges and opportunities in occupational safety and health, and Safety and Health Management Systems.
The World Congress is held every three years under the joint sponsorship of the ILO, ISSA and the hosting organization with the objective of providing the latest expertise and information on the prevention of industrial disasters, sharing experience and knowledge on the prevention of industrial disasters and occupational diseases among the participants.
The goal of the Congress is for participants to strengthen relationships among governments, employers and their organizations, workers and their organizations, non-governmental organizations, and safety and health professionals as well as others to improve the prevention of occupational injuries and diseases around the world.
Safety and health practitioners will learn practical ideas that can be adapted to their local conditions and apply them quickly.
The World Congress provides a forum for the exchange of new information and practices with the goal of promoting safety and health at work; reinforces and builds networks and alliances while laying the groundwork for cooperation and strengthening relationships among all concerned; and provides a platform for the development of knowledge, strategic and practical ideas that can immediately put into use.
The target audience of the World Congress are safety engineers and technicians, hygienists, occupational scientists, high-level government officials, high-level decision-makers, chief executive officers, and labor leaders, occupational physicians as well as persons working in the field of occupational medicine, labor inspectors, technical factory inspectors, educators, trainers and teachers, and others in the field of education, workers and their representatives, employees and their representatives,
decision-makers in the public sector and in the social security sector, public and non-public organizations, international and regional organizations, manufacturers and importers,; experts in communication and public relations, and medial representatives and journalists.
The 1st World Congress was held in Rome in 1955,; the XVI World Congress in Vienna, Austria in 2002,; and the XVII World Congress in Orland, the United States, in 2005.
On December 30, 2004 Korea submitted an application for the right to host the XVIII World Congress on Safety and Health at Work to the ILO. The ILO informed Seoul of becoming the venue of the 2008 World Congress. The ILO and the ISSA confirmed that Seoul was awarded the right to host the XVIII World Congress in September 2005 before it was officially announced during the 2005 VXII World Congress held in Orlando, the United States.
The International Organizing Committee of the XVIII World Congress on Safety and Health at Work is made up of 12 representatives - four from the ILO, the ISSA and the KOSHA. The IOC of the XVIII World Congress is preparing for the successful organization of the upcoming World Congress.
The symbol mark of the 2008 World Congress is based on a motif of traditional Korean "Taeguk circle,"which is an ancient symbol of the universe depicting powerful cosmic forces. The earth surrounded by an arch means that safety and health officials from around the world exchange information. The two different colors of the arch symbolize "Safety"and "Health,"while C, the initial of the word "Congress,"highlights the meaning of the World Congress.
The 24th Asia-Pacific Occupational Safety & Health Organization (APOSHO) Annual General Meeting and the 18th Korea National Occupational Safety & Health Convention will be held from June 29 through July 2, 2008 simultaneously together with the 2008 World Congress.
The 24th APOSHO Annual General Meeting will be the second one held in Korea following the 14th APOSHO Annual General Meeting in 1998.
The purpose of the 24th APOSHO Annual General Meeting is for occupational safety and health experts, worksite safety and health officials and those interested in the field of safety and health at work to discuss and share the knowledge and experiences on the prevention of industrial disasters and occupational diseases to contribute to the prevention of industrial disasters.
The APOSHO is an international body composed of 33 non-profit professional organizations devoted to the prevention of occupational accidents and diseases from 22 countries in the Asia-Pacific region. China has five member organizations, while each from Korea, Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand has two members. Korea was admitted to the APOSHO as a member country during the 4th APOSHO Annual Conference held in Tokyo in 1988.
The first APOSHO Annual Conference was inaugurated in Singapore in August 1985 by the suggestion of chairperson of the National Safety Council of Australia. The APOSHO Annual Conference, which was initially called "the Coordinating Committee of Asia-Pacific National Safety Councils," was changed to the current name at the 8th Annual Conference.
Major industrial disasters of each country and the latest policies and techniques on the prevention of industrial disasters will be presented during the general session of the APOSHO Annual Conference, while the upcoming APOSHO Annual Conference will also deal with reports on each member organization's activities, post-session festivals and screening new members and reports on activities by subcommittees. nw

Dignitaries attend a ceremony to open the 2006 Korea International Safety & Security Exhibition (KISS). The 2007 KISS will be held at the COEX Pacific Hall in Samseong-dong, Seoul from July 2 through July 5.

(top photo) Labor Minister Lee Sang-soo and Park Kil-sang, president of the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency, are seen during the 39th Industrial Safety and Health Rally held at the COEX on July 3, 2006.