2010년 10월 19일 화요일

MV HD l G20 (Various Artists) - 렛츠 고 (Let's Go)「K-Pop October 2010」

Volunteers for G-20 summit in Seoul


Seoul City to recruit 4,000 people by end of June who will volunteer from Nov. 11 to Nov. 13 The Seoul Metropolitan City is recruiting volunteers who will assist during the two-day summit of the G-20 in Seoul that runs from Nov. 11 to 12.

The chosen volunteers will work from Nov. 8 to Nov. 13 to support various events such as the G-20 Business Summit to be held from Nov. 10 to Nov. 11 and the G-20 summit that will be held from Nov. 11 to Nov. 12. They will support international visitors who come to Seoul for the meetings by guiding them to their accommodations, as well as helping them visit famous places in Seoul and other regions.

“The volunteers for the G-20 summit and other events will serve as Seoul Metropolitan City’s civilian diplomats, helping boost Seoul City’s image and brand value,” said an official at the City Government.

Guidelines for recruitment of volunteers for G-20

Application period : May 27 ~ June 30, 2010
Qualification : Korean and international residents※ who can speak the languages of the G-20 member states
(※ international residents who can speak Korean)
Size of volunteer force : 4,000 (about 2,602 volunteers, or 15 %, will be selected in advance)

By sector

Recruiting methods: phone interview (first stage), interview and document review (second stage)
Recruiting methods 2 : language tests (first stage), interview and document review (final stage)
Criteria for recruitment
- applicants’ past experience with similar events and ability
- applicants who are fluent in English and other foreign languages are preferred
How to apply
- Internet: (http://volunteer.seoul.go.kr)
- mail-in application: Seoul Metropolitan Government’s center for volunteers
 (100-043 302, 3rd floor, Namsan Building, 34-5, 3ga Namsan-dong, Joongku, Seoul
- application through fax: 02-776-8481, 02-2274-73091
Announcement of qualified applicants
- date: July 16, 2010(Friday)
http://volunteer.seoul.go.kr or http://g20.seoul.go.kr

Results of Busan G20 meeting

The Busan G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors' Meeting ended on June 5th with the presentation of the official communique after 2 days of discussions. The communique emphasized the need to improve fiscal soundness in the wake of the European sovereign debt crisis.

Held over a 2-day period between the 4th and the 5th, 40 finance ministers and central bank governors, as well as the managing director of the IMF participated in the meeting to lay a foundation for further talks at the Toronto Summit to be held 3 weeks later and the Seoul Summit Meeting to be held in November.
(Photo: Yonhap News)

With the financial market reeling from the aftershock of the European financial crisis, international cooperation to improve fiscal soundness was emphasized throughout the meetings.

On current global economic situation, the G20 ministers stated that "the global economy continues to recover faster than anticipated, although at an uneven pace across countries and regions. However, the recent volatility in financial markets reminds us that significant challenges remain and underscores the importance of international cooperation."

All participants agreed on the importance of financial repair and fiscal structural reform, and a consensus was made to put in place credible, growth-friendly measures differentiated for and tailored to national circumstances to deliver fiscal sustainability.

For those countries with serious fiscal challenges, the ministers recommended that they accelerate the pace of consolidation. At the same time, they need to expand domestic sources of growth within their capacity while maintaining macroeconomic stability, emphasizing the importance of economic growth along with the recovery from the crisis.

Also, the ministers have developed a "basket" of policy responses to build a "stronger, more sustainable and more balanced growth" and will submit these options for consideration by the respective leaders of the government at the June 2010 Toronto Summit.

Global financial safety net · consensus on five principles for bank levy
Concerning the development of a global financial safety net, proposed by Korea, recent events propelled the ministers to acknowledge a need for national, regional and multilateral efforts to deal with capital volatility and prevent crisis contagion.  They have agreed to explore policy options to improve global financial safety nets, and in line with this effort, the IMF was tasked to make rapid progress in reviewing its lending instruments, with a view to developing and upgrading them, as appropriate.

As for inclusion of the financial sector in paying for burdens associated with government interventions, such as the global bank tax, the G20 has agreed to develop five principles:
·  The need to protect taxpayers
·  Reduce risks from the financial system
·  Protect the flow of credit in good times and bad
·  Taking into account individual country's circumstances and options
·  Helping promote level playing field

But the nations are still far apart in reaching a consensus on the specifics of the proposal, and full consensus is expected to take some time.

In addition to the above proposal, the nations committed to accelerate the implementation of strong measures to improve transparency, regulation and supervision of hedge funds, credit rating agencies, compensation practices and OTC derivatives in an internationally consistent and non-discriminatory way, and to carry them out without setback.

As for work on banking supervision, the consensus will be met during the Seoul Summit, instead of the originally planned end-of-the-year deadline.

Other points of interest include the IMF quota reform which calls for a 5% shift in quota from advanced nations to emerging nations to be completed by the Seoul Summit, as well as reforms to IMF management structure to be accelerated.

Additionally, Korea's proposal to share its experience in industrialization with developing nations was met with much acclaim.
The next G20 Finance Ministers and Central Governors' meeting will be held in Gyungju, Korea in October.

* Government press release (June 8)

Seoul to install 12 more “intelligent” bus stations for G-20 meeting

In preparation for the G-20 Financial Summit in Seoul, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced in mid-June that it plans to establish an IT intelligence system in 12 more bus stations around Gangnam-gu district. 

The selected bus stations will be in a 1.5-kilometer radius of the COEX complex in Samseong-dong where the big meeting will take place on Nov. 11 and 12.

The U-shelter, as the new bus system is named, will display the exact arrival time of all buses that stop there, as well information on geography, weather, pollution levels and traffic, among others. There are already a few in pilot operation around Jongno-gu district.

Passengers can search for relevant information through a touch screen installed at the bus station. You can check out video images of your bus departing previous stops on a real time basis. The same screen can also show you traffic and a map of the vicinity. What’s more, all this information will be given in English, Japanese and Chinese.

A sensor will be placed on the roof of the bus station to detect the weather conditions of the day, including temperature, humidity, ozone and carbon monoxide levels. The transportation card detector there will also confirm how much value is stored on your bus pass.

Information gathered at the U-shelters will be collected on the central server of Seoul City, to be made available later to not only bus passengers but the general public.

Moreover, the city plans to facilitate the U-shelters as part of a tour course for visiting officials and journalists from G-20 member nations.

The U-shelters will in future be installed at bus transfer points and highway bus stations.

“We plan to promote Korea’s advanced IT infrastructure through U-shelters,” said an official at Seoul City Government. “We’ll consider expanding them to other places depending on progress.”

President Lee calls for full preparations for G-20 Summit at sherpa meeting

President Lee Myung-bak gave a welcome speech at a sherpa meeting held in preparation for the G-20 Financial Summit scheduled for November this year in Seoul.

In his speech, the president underlined the importance of the Seoul summit and called for earnest efforts and contribution from sherpas to make the international gathering a success.

President Lee, by emphasizing active interest in and contribution for the G-20 Summit, implied that preparations for the meeting have begun on a big scale.

About 100 representatives from G-20 nations, including those from international organizations, attended the meeting. The participants plan to make a review of the major agenda items for the Seoul summit, the general direction of the discussions and future plans.

Based on the joint statement released at the previous G-20 summit in Toronto, Canada, this latest sherpa meeting will discuss on the existing G-20 agenda that includes global economic trends, frameworks, reform of financial regulations, trade, energy as well as a financial safety net and development, all of which was agreed on in Canada.

A sherpa meeting is a closed government meeting. Therefore specific details like when, how long or where it took place are not disclosed.

Welcome to Seoul: Big preparations for G-20 Financial Summit in Nov.

“The G-20 Financial Summit will take place in Seoul on Nov. 11 and 12. The government must be prepared with a good agenda and the people with hospitable manners to welcome our guests. We have to make this gathering a success, for this will be another opportunity to upgrade Korea’s image. We ask for your ardent interest and support,” said Sakong Il, the chairman of the Presidential Committee for the G-20 Summit at the press conference in early July.

True to his words, various preparations are being made for the G-20 Seoul Summit. The main page of the official website for G-20 Financial Summit -- whose official management was passed from the United Kingdom to Korea -- has been lit up by a taegeuk mark that symbolizes the Korean national flag since January.

The image of the Korean Peninsula making advances to the world is also shown through arrows reaching out to various continents. Furthermore, Korea has already held two G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meetings, in Incheon in February and in Busan in June, respectively.

Most recently the preparatory committee held a press conference to reveal a separate website dedicated to summit in Seoul, along with its symbol and other information. The symbol “Lantern of Seoul,” a perfect blend of the Korean traditional lantern (cheongsam-chorong) and the image of a rising sun, exhibited the message of welcome for the visitors and a silent resolve to make the big gathering worthwhile. 

To make it look simple and neat, only the basic colors of red, blue and black were used. The official symbol was chosen through a public design competition.

Jang Dae-young, 23, whose design beat other entries to become the symbol of the G-20 Seoul Summit, said he decided on a lantern, one of the most well known traditional images of Korea lighting up the world. The symbol also carries the meaning of hope, welcome and hospitality.

The 20 rays of the sun within the lantern express strong cooperation between the G-20 nations to lead the way for vibrant economic activity around the globe. The yin and yang of the taegeuk symbol hint at the very spirit of the G-20 summit -- the harmony between the developing and developed nations, thus expressing the resolve to make an active reflection of positions among non G-20 member nations.

Seoul Summit Website rich with content 
The site for the Seoul summit is loaded with content to attract the participation of more people. The Korean website contains all the basic information on the upcoming summit, including its significance and agendas which can be seen at a glance. 

The site also links to Twitter, a blog and other social network services (SNS) to expand the interactivity. The children’s section provides equally informative content for youngsters with simpler explanations and illustrations to give a better grasp of the event.

The English language website not only provides details of the summit but also has an extra section called “Experience Korea.” Site visitors get a briefing about basic information of the country including its history, culture and tourism. For the convenience of overseas online users, the webpage is coded in such a way as to allow easy access of all browsers from any part of the world.

“The lantern symbol on the website was made possible through effective communication between people and the government,” said Mr. Sakong, who heads the preparation committee. “We shall make the Seoul summit a public event for all people to enjoy.”

G-20 young ambassadors on their way
The preparation committee, jointly with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, also held the launch ceremony for the Young Ambassadors for the G-20 Seoul Summit at COEX Millennium Plaza in Samseong-dong, Seoul on July 11. The selected youth ambassadors all gathered at the site to form a flash mob that highlighted its slogan “Young people! Shout out for G-20!”
 
The “Young Ambassadors” in this case are special envoys to represent the 20 member nations of the G-20. A total of 60 college students were selected after a careful screening process of documents and interviews. The 60 students were then grouped into 20 teams. Their mission is to promote to the world the importance of the G-20 summit as well as the significance of Korea being the host country, its improved image and the responsibility it has to bear.

Their promotional activities will comprise of both off- and online activities with social networking services like Twitter and (Korean language) me2day at the forefront of communicating with the world. They will also be encouraged to create content for mock G-20 agendas. Those that excel in all these activities will get to be a volunteer worker at the actual meeting.

The program is also being backed by six top experts on Korea promotion, including Seo Kyoung-duk, a Korean PR expert and a visiting professor at Sung Shin Women's University. Seo is well known for his bold promotion of Korea’s ownership of Dokdo Island, the name of the East Sea, the ancient Goguryeo Kingdom and other historical aspects of the country. Recently he also joined in the promotion of Korean cuisine.

“Indifference is the biggest obstacle for promoting Korea,” said Seo. “So it’s quite heartening to see young college students participating in this event.” Seo has opened his own PR blog for the G-20 Seoul Summit and is in the middle of his new project named Dream which will be unveiled during the summit.

The preparatory committee also runs its own website (Korean language) and its English website is currently under construction. This page brings related links and the latest information together and is considering expanding service through cell phones and other mobile venues.

*The G-20 meeting first started out as a gathering of financial ministers and central bank governors meeting to discuss financial and economic issues around the globe in 1999. It later evolved to become summits of 20 member nations made up of leaders of G7 nations (the United States, Japan, United Kingdom, France, Italy & Canada), plus 12 emerging nations (South Korea, China, India, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia, Russia, Turkey & Saudi Arabia & South Africa). The GDP of these 20 nations alone makes up 85 percent of the total world production.

Official symbol and website for the G20 Seoul Summit

The Presidential Committee for the G20 Summit (Chairman: SaKong Il) unveiled the official symbol for the G20 Seoul Summit, to be held on November 11-12, 2010.

The symbol incorporates two images: the sun rising over the East Sea and a ‘Chung-sa-cho-rong’, a traditional Korean lantern with a red-and-blue silk shade. The Korean government will use the symbol in welcoming the leaders who will be participating in the G20 Seoul Summit.

Professional advisors worked with the G20 organizing committee to finalize the official symbol, based on a design chosen in a nationwide contest held April 5 - May 7. The original design was created by Jang Dae-young and entitled ‘Seoul’s Lantern (a Chung-sa-cho-rong)’. 2,279 Korean citizens submitted proposals for the contest, designed to raise awareness of the upcoming summit.

“This official symbol represents Korea’s commitment to furthering the work of the G20, and helping to guide the world economy beyond the financial crisis,” said Dr. Sakong Il, Chairman of the Presidential Committee for the G20 Summit.

The G20 Summit Committee has also launched its official website, in Korean and English, www.seoulsummit.kr. The website offers the most up-to-date news on the summit process, as well as background information on past summits and related topics.

‘Chung-sa-cho-rong’ is a traditional Korean image, known to add light in the dark and act as a guide to the right path; it further symbolizes a host’s thoughtfulness in welcoming guests. 

The 20 rays of light reaching out from the center of the ‘Chung-sa-cho-rong’ represent the sun rising in the East Sea. In the context of the G20, it can be seen as representing economic growth enhanced by greater global cooperation.

‘Chung-sa-cho-rong’ encapsulates the balance between yin and yang, and harmony and cooperation between advanced and emerging economies. The lantern is meant to underscore Seoul’s goals for the summit, including actively incorporating the voices of non-G20 countries into the G20 process.

The symbol will be used in official documents, promotional materials, badges, and business cards as well other related items.

G-20 agrees to halve fiscal deficit by 2013


The leaders of the G-20 Financial Summit in Toronto, Canada agreed on three general principles to establish financial stability in line and pledged to halve fiscal deficit by 2013.

The participants also agreed to make work for liberalization of trade through efforts like denouncing protectionism and concluding Doha Round. The financial ministers and heads of the central banks of respective countries promised to gather at the next G-20 Financial Summit scheduled to take place in November in Seoul, and offer measures for financial safety net. A joint statement that included the resolutions from above was released on Sunday, June 27 (local time).

The main text of the joint statement at large, called for bolstering international collaboration sustainable and balanced growth, reforming financial regulations and international financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) and improving trade and investment. Other issues touched on by the statement were anti-corruption, climate change, subsidies issues for energy and assistance for poor nations among others. 

The side text mentioned setting up a framework for a strong, sustainable and balanced growth, called for an overall reform in the financial sector, a study on appropriateness of international financial institutions, assistance to the financially vulnerable class and more.

G-20 Framework: Cutting fiscal deficit by 50 percent by 2013

In establishing a framework for a strong, sustainable and balanced growth, the heads of the G-20 nations acknowledged that although the world economy is recovering faster than expected risks still remain due to high rate of unemployment, weak financial market, deterioration in budget among others. The priority was set on building a basis for continuous recovery and economic growth.

The heads of the G-20 acknowledged the need to establish fiscal soundness, especially when it comes to advanced economies and decided to commit plans that will cut down fiscal deficits by half by 2013 and either stabilize or reduce government-to-GDP ratios by 2016.

Toward that end the G-20 leaders agreed on the general principle that fiscal consolidation plans must be “credible, clearly communicated, differentiated to national circumstances, and focused on measures to foster economic growth.”

Fiscal soundness became the main agenda ever since the financial crisis in Greece which then took over the southern part of Europe and began to threaten the global economy that has only begun to recover. The worsened budget condition for most of the nations after the economic crisis due to government support measures also played a role in recognizing the importance of realizing a sustainable budget. Other cautions were made for state support measures that could do more harm than good for the self-recovery of economy.

For global rebalance, the G-20 participants agreed on policy measures that are applied according to situation of each group countries. Advanced economies with deficits will maintain its liberal market policy, improve its competitiveness in export and bolster domestic savings. Advanced economies with surplus will focus on structural reform from the inside to encourage domestic spending. The emerging nations especially, will focus on strengthening social safety net, increase its spending for infrastructure and pursue structural reform to improve flexibility in foreign exchange. 

Agreements were also made on reforming commodity and labor markets, all to secure better potential for growth.
On currency policy, the G-20 participants decided to focus on stabilizing prices, assisting economic recovery and introducing bold measures like Advance Market Commitment (AMC) system to resolve development gaps. IMF and WB expect such measures to be of great help to increase world GDP rapidly, resulting into new jobs for tens of thousands of people, escape poverty and reduce imbalance in current account around the world.

Establishing common principle for financial regulation, protection of tax payers

The issue of bank capital and liquidity regulation will be concluded at the next summit meeting scheduled in Seoul, Korea. So far the world leaders decided only on the level of regulation and basic direction. Bank capital will be formed centered on ordinary shares and the capital adequacy ratio will be raised but the actual implementation will determined by situation of each country.

The G-20 summit recognized various alternatives to shouldering burden of financial sector according to the situation each country is in and agreed only on the basic principles this time such as protecting tax payers and reducing risks in financial system. Regulations and supervision will be toughened for hedge fund, credit rating companies, compensation practices and over the counter directives.

Specific alternatives for financial safety net to be decided in Seoul

In the latest G-20 summit the global leaders recognized the need of a financial safety of domestic, overseas and global scale to prevent volatility of capital, vulnerability in financial sector as well as measures against contagion and ordered financial ministers and heads of central banks of respective nation to come up with a viable policy for the next summit in Seoul.

IMF received request to speed up the reviewing process for risk prevention loan system to improve its capability to supervise policy. It was also stipulated in the talks that establishment of an International Monetary System (IMS) much more stable and restorable in nature is the final aim for the establishment of global financial safety net. Bilateral currency swap and safety net of both local and global scale are being discussed.

On the agenda for “development” the leaders agreed on submission of acting plan for practical measures and launch of working-level group at next summit meeting in Seoul. Regarding subsidies for energy, each country will gradually put an end to it in mid and long-term and will be continually reviewed at summit meetings. The measure to prevent marine pollution will be discussed in more details at G-20 sherpas' meeting slated for this July in Seoul.

100 leading global CEOs to attend Seoul G20 Business Summit

World-leading global business leaders will head to Seoul to attend the Seoul G20 Business Summit in Nov. this year.

The Seoul G20 Business Summit Committee unveiled the confirmed list of CEOs who will attend the upcoming business summit, which will take place on November 10-11, ahead of the G20 summit slated for November 11-12.

The list of CEOs confirmed to attend the upcoming summit include Arline Schwarzman, CEO of Blackstone Group, Deutsche Bank CEO Josef Ackermann, Stephen Green, Chairman of HSBC Holdings, Standard Chartered CEO Peter Sands, Vikram S. Pandit Citigroup, Visa Inc’s Joseph W. Saunders and Nomura Holdings’ Kenichi Watanabe.

The meeting will also be attended by world-leading global business figures like the CEO of ArcelorMittal, Lakshmi Mittal, Peter Brabeck, Chairman and CEO of Nestle, and Paul Jacobs, the CEO of Qualcomm Enterprises.
(Clockwise from left, top row: Deutsche Bank CEO Josef Ackermann, CEO of China Merchants Bank Dr Ma Weihua, CEO of Nestle Peter Brabeck, President and CEO of Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Yasuchika Hasegawa, CEO of ArcelorMittal Lakshmi Mittal, CEO of AREVA Anne Lauvergeon, CEO of Vale Roger Agnelli, CEO of Qualcomm Enterprise Paul Jacobs)

The two-day gathering will feature discussions in four sectors:  Trade and investment, finance, green growth, and the social responsibility of corporations. 

Twelve selected participants will act as "conveners" to coordinate discussions for the CEOs over the course of 12 agendas. Che Tae-won, CEO of Korea’s SK Group, is among the selected conveners, and will chair the discussion on the agenda for new and renewable energy in green growth sector.

The Seoul G20 Business Summit Committee organized by selecting 80 business figures from G20 member countries, and 20 from non-member countries, based on 350 corporations chosen by Fortune magazine. 

World-leading CEOs in many industries will attend the upcoming business summit to have round table discussions about economic issues with the leaders of world economies, said the head of the committee, Sohn Kyung-shik, Chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries, according to the Dong-A Ilbo report published on Aug. 6.

Join the ‘Rural-20 Supporters’ & travel Korea’s beautiful countryside!

The Rural-20 Project was launched by the Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MIFAFF) to introduce people to the scenic beauty and unique culture of Korea’s countryside. In anticipation of the G-20 Summit in November, IFAFF will be operating the ‘Rural-20 Supporters’ Project from August to November to give visitors and international residents a chance to explore the countryside.

Twenty rural sites across the nation have been carefully selected as prime destinations and categorized into four themes (Experience, Nature, Orient, and Well-being), letting visitors easily pick locations suited to their individual interests. Tours are further divided into one-day or two-day programs, with an easy-to-use map showing site locations and types.  

Though anyone can register on the site as a supporter, tours only have room for a total of roughly 2 thousand participants. More information on registration and reservations, and Rural-20 Travel guides, are available on the Rural-20 official website (www.rural20.kr). The website is available in Korean, English, Japanese, and Chinese.

In preparation for the project, local residents of each Rural-20 area were taught basic English, Japanese, and Chinese conversational skills and given information on important cultural differences. As a further service to internationals, the Ministry has produced Rural-20 promotional brochures and videos in three different languages: English, Japanese, and Chinese. These promotional brochures are available at embassies, Korean language institutions, tourist information centers, and overseas branch offices of the Korea Tourism Organization.

* 4 categories of Rural-20 areas by theme.
○ Experience Travel: features a variety of experience programs (harvesting crops, fishing, etc.)
○ Nature Travel: focuses on the beauty of the country villages and the wide open fields
○ Orient Travel: includes villages with deep histories and rich cultural heritages
○ Well-being Travel: by doing leisure activities and relaxing, tourists can restore their health both mentally and physically

* Rural-20 Project: The Rural-20 Project is a special program launched by MIFAFF to gear up for the G-20 Summit in Seoul. R-20 destinations include 11 villages and 9 popular tourist sites.

Key phrases for the G20 Summit revealed

The key phrases for the G20 Financial Summit meeting have been disclosed. The Presidential Committee for the G20 Seoul Summit explained that the new phrase “Shared Growth Beyond Crisis” reflects the main theme of the G20 Summit, which aims to establish a framework for strong, sustainable balanced growth worldwide.

The agenda for the G20 Summit was classified into eight categories: ▲ global economy ▲cooperative framework for balanced growth ▲reform of the international financial regulatory system ▲modernization of international financial institutions and the global financial safety net ▲development ▲trade and investment ▲energy and anti-corruption ▲ business summit.

The government has already held a high level working group meeting in Seoul on July 19 and 20, followed by the Sherpa meeting from July 20 to22. The high-level meeting, attended by some 100 representatives from member nations and global institutions, discussed specifying the existing agendas and decided on the future directions for talks.

The Sherpa meeting, which is a closed-door event, was attended by another 100 deputy representatives and aides from member nations and relevant institutions to review the general direction for the G20 agenda. The name of the meeting is derived from the Sherpas of the Himalayas, guides and porters for those who seek to scale the mountains.

The Presidential Committee will continue to hold preparatory meetings related to finance, budget, energy, and development, and seek the advice of other countries to coordinate before the official meeting. 

Gwangju prepares to host G20 Deputies’ Meeting

Gwangju City is in the final stages of preparation for successfully hosting a meeting of Deputy Finance Ministers from the G20 states.

The meeting will be held from the 4th to the 5th of September, at the Mudeung Park Hotel in Gwangju, and will be attended by 150 people, including deputy finance ministers from G20 member states, the vice-president of the central bank, as well as officials from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and the World Bank (WB).

South Korea is current chair, and the G20 Advisory Committee has been taking steps to ensure readiness for the event. As part of this, since March this year, Gwangju Preparatory team has established and undertaken a plan to ready the city in terms of environment and public order, so that participants at the conference will see the beautiful and clean face of the city.

Final checks are now underway of the city’s conference venues, electrics, gas, fire safety, construction, as well as the cleanliness, care and disinfection of kitchens and food preparation facilities.

From now until the conference date, the remaining time will be spent ensuring total readiness, including intensive urban environment maintenance, as well as the addition of flags and flowers along roads and streets.

In particular, the Gwangju Conference will offer the chance for private discussions and pre-negotiations on relevant matters, and to formulate and agenda, which will provide the foundation for discussions at the main November 11th G20 Summit, to be held in Seoul.

The G20 is comprised of USA, Britain, France and other G7 countries, as well as China, Russia, Brazil and other leading emerging economic nations. Together the G20’s Gross Domestic Product (GPD) totals 85% of the world’s, and their populations account for two-thirds of the global population. The G20 Summit is attending by heads of state of the world’s leading economies, and is an key forum for making plans for the global economic future.