The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on June 30 announced its opening this year of 11 more branches of King Sejong Institute (KSI) in nine countries. Shown is a group photo at the finals of a KSI speaking and writing competition on May 15 at the Korean Cultural Center (KCC) in Egypt. (KCC in Egypt)

By Lee Dasom

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on June 30 announced it will open 11 more branches of King Sejong Institute (KSI) in nine countries this year, bringing the total to 252 in 87 countries. 

The nine countries are Egypt, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, China, the Philippines, Germany, Italy and Hungary. Egypt and China each got two new branches.

The ministry said Egypt got two more branches because of the high number of people on the waiting list, while Uzbekistan got one to meet surging demand for Korean-language courses.

A combined 1,285 people are on the waitlist for the KSI branch at the Korean Cultural Center in Cairo.

Uzbekistan has seven branches but the ministry decided to add another there given the prominent rise in the number of people taking the Test of Proficiency in Korean and those learning the language for domestic employment or study abroad.

Ninety-four institutes in 43 countries applied for KSI status, marking a record-high competition ratio of 8.5 to one.

By 2030, the ministry plans to expand the number of KSI Centers serving global regions from five to 20 and designate and run over 350 branches.

"KSI is a cultural outpost on the front line of promoting the Korean language and culture worldwide," said Lee Jeongmi, director-general of the ministry's Culture Policy Bureau.

 
"We will boost support by expanding and designating capable KSIs to make the Korean language and culture stand tall as a global pillar."

dlektha0319@korea.kr