Korea Week in Cuba is taking place in Havana from Oct. 30 to Nov. 4. Visitors to the Korea Pavilion look at some of the electronic goods on display there.
Korean electronic goods are winning the attention of many visitors.
Some of them are enjoying a virtual reality (VR) experience through a pair of special goggles.
These are visitors to the Korea Pavilion, part of the Korea Week in Cuba festival currently underway in Havana from Oct. 30 to Nov 4.
The week-long trade fair is a reciprocal event to Cuba Week in Korea that took place in Seoul in May this year. This is so far the largest such event ever held in Havana, with a delegation of 74 Korean companies participating. The delegation also includes eight leading Korean companies, such as Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor Company.
Cuba's Deputy Minister of Trade and Foreign Investment Ileana Bárbara Nuñez (left) tries on a pair of virtual reality goggles at the Korea Pavilion at the Havana International Fair in the Cuban capital on Oct. 30.
The program for Korea Week in Cuba includes the first-ever Cuba-Korea Business Committee, cultural exchanges between Korea and Cuba, and meetings with the investment delegation. Another unmissable spot is the Korea Pavilion at the Havana International Fair, taking place concurrently with Korea Week, where visitors can tryout first-hand various products made in Korea, including home appliances, LED lights, air conditioners, medical equipment, car parts and other such manufactured goods.
As part of the first-ever Cuba-Korea Business Committee on Oct. 30, representatives from about 100 companies from both Korea and Cuba were in attendance. Irene Garcia who headed the Cuban business committee, hoped for active cooperation with Korea, saying, “I hope the Cuba-Korea Business Committee can help establish a channel for regular exchanges so that it can lead both countries to become important business partners for each other in the near future.”
The first Cuba-Korea Business Committee is attended by representatives from about 100 companies from both Korea and Cuba, in Havana on Oct. 30. They discussed measures to boost bilateral economic cooperation between the two countries.
KOTRA CEO Kim Jaehong delivers his congratulatory remarks during the first-ever Cuba-Korea Business Committee meeting, in Havana on Oct. 30.
Business executives from Korea and Cuba also held a series of talks about cooperation on the medical, biotech and pharmaceutical sectors.
During Korea Week, a trade delegation formed by KOTRA and the Korea Importers Association will be dispatched to Cuba to seek out promising items to trade. A delegation composed of five Korean firms, including LG Life Science, will also visit Havana to discuss cooperation measures with its Cuban counterparts in the medical and biotech sectors.
The Korea Pharmaceutical Traders Association will sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with BioCubaFarma, a holding company for 31 Cuban medical and biotech firms, in order to strengthen cooperation on the medical and pharmaceutical sectors. This will be the first MOU ever signed between organizations in the two countries.
KOTRA, which ran Korea Week alongside other Korea-related organizations, has had a local branch in Havana since 2005.
KOTRA CEO Kim Jaehong said, “We're witnessing rapidly growing business exchanges between Korea and Cuba, such as the hosting of both Korea Week and Cuba Week within one year.”
“I hope we can work closely together so that we can cooperate on a wider range of sectors, such as electricity supply, renewable energy, the medical industry, biotechnology, infrastructure construction, food and tourism,” he said.
Participants in the Korea Week in Cuba festival celebrate the opening of the Korea Pavilion at the Havana International Fair, in the Cuban capital on Oct. 30.
By Yoon Sojung
Korea.net Staff Writer
Photos: KOTRA
arete@korea.kr