[Edaily Reporter LEE SEON-WOO ] “Islands Connect,” a network involving local governments from island regions around the world and organizations related to tourism and MICE, was launched on the 29th of last month. It is an international cooperation network based on the “International Islands Tourism Policy Forum” (ITOP), established to jointly address challenges common to island regions—such as geographic accessibility, transportation, and infrastructure—in attracting and hosting events, and to share regional policies and experiences.

ITOP is an intergovernmental tourism policy consultative body established in 1997 under the leadership of four island regions: Jeju Island, Hainan (China), Okinawa (Japan), and Bali (Indonesia). The number of member regions, previously 10, increased to 12 this year with the addition of the Galápagos Islands (Ecuador) and the South Aegean (Greece).
At the 27th ITOP meeting, held on the 29th of last month at the Seolmundae Halmang Hall in Jeju Stone Culture Park, the launch meeting for “Islands Connect” was also held. Nine regions, including Jeju, Hawaii, Bali, and Phuket, participated in the meeting. Jeju Special Self-Governing Province and the Jeju Tourism Organization, which are pursuing the bid to host the 2028 G20 (Group of 20) Summit, shared their experience in organizing the event with representatives from Bali—the host of the 2022 Summit—during this meeting.
Cho Jin-hoon, Team Leader of the MICE Bureau at the Jeju Tourism Organization, stated, “We plan to institutionalize the exchange of information among Islands Connect member regions and identify MICE cooperation models tailored to island regions.”