1. The Foreign Ministry, together with Maekyung Media Group (MMG), has held the “OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) English essay contest 2017” with the aim to raise awareness of the Korean youth on global issues discussed at the OECD.

° The Foreign Ministry received from April 28 till May 12 essay entries on “the OECD’s role in the efforts to achieve inclusive growth amid recent anti-globalization moves, such as trade protectionism.”

2. After the reviews of the essay entries and the in-person interviews with the applicants, the external judges of the contest chose two grand prize and two first-place prize winners.

3. At the awards ceremony of the contest held at the Foreign Ministry on July 25, the two grand prize winners and the two first-place prize winners were presented with the Foreign Minister’s awards and the MMG Chairman’s awards, respectively.

° As part of their prizes, the two grand prize winners were given a chance to attend as observers the OECD Forum held in Paris on June 6 and 7, and the two first-place prize winners will be offered an opportunity to attend as observers the World Knowledge Forum, which will be hosted by the MMG in Seoul in October.

4. Going forward, the Foreign Ministry will continue conducting various projects along with the public in an effort to help the Korean youth raise their awareness on and interest in global issues and build presence on the global stage.


* unofficial translation