About Korea

Population of 51.2 million (Ministry of Security and Public Administration, 2014) with Seoul – its capital and 5 other major cities (Busan, Incheon, Daegu, Daejeon, Gwangju, Ulsan) having 20% and 25.5% of total population, respectively. South Korea symbols include national anthem (Aegukga), national flag (Taegeukgi), and national flower (Mugunghwa). Its official language is Korean (Hangeul), with the writing system developed by King Sejong the Great in 15th century.

The economy of the Republic of Korea (named Miracle of Hangang River) ranks 13th in the world by GDP (PPP), and has highly developed industry sector constituting one-thirds of economic structure (OECD, 2015). Other sectors contributing about 40% to economic structure include trade, transport, accommodation, communication, finance, insurance and real estate (OECD, 2015).

South Korea also is known for rich cultural heritage with a number of its sites included in UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register. National music, folk dance, pottery, painting and calligraphy constitute traditional culture of South Korea. Hally or ‘Korean Wave’ refers to increasing popularity of Korean entertainment across Asia and other countries since mid-1990s. Korean Wave has been associated with Korean drama, popular music, food, literature and Korean language.

About Daejeon

Daejeon Metropolitan City, the 2nd administrative capital (after Seoul) is located at the center of South Korea and is the 5th largest city, with population of over 1,5 million people. Since 1973, Daejeon has been the nation’s science and technology hub, due to substantial R&D potential concentrated in the Daedeok Science Town – the nation’s major innovation platform. Due to excellent infrastructure system and cental location of Daejeon, one can conveniently travel to any other destination.

Daejeon has 17 high education institutions, a well-developed transportation system, and cutting-edge medical service system. Daejeon is also a popular tourist destination with its beautiful nature, annual festivals, and places of sightseeing including Daejeon Culture and Arts Center, Expo Park, O-World Park, Yu-Seong Spa, and others.