The International Exposition Yeosu Korea 2012 that will open its doors to visitors on May 12, 2012, is expected to bring more than visitors to South Korea.

According to the organizing committee for Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea and local think-tanks, the cost of building the facilities and operating them for the three-month event will be about 2.1 trillion won ($1.9 billion).

While significant, the figure is about a sixth of the economic benefits the expo is projected to bring to Korea.

Event organizers estimate that the expo will attract about 8 million visitors during its three-month run, create a production-inducement effect equivalent to about 12.2 trillion won and result in added value of more than 5.7 trillion won.

The event is also projected to create 78,833 jobs.

Of the total, Yeosu and the surrounding South Jeolla Province are expected to reap the most benefits from the three-month long exposition.

According to an estimate by the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade, 42.1 percent or about 5.15 trillion won of the production inducement effect will be felt in South Jeolla Province. The region will also take the largest share of the added value and jobs created by hosting the event.

Of the added value, 42.4 percent, or 2.43 trillion, won is projected to be felt within the province, while 42.9 percent of the jobs will be created within the region.

Seoul and the surrounding areas will be the second in line after South Jeolla in terms of economic benefits. The region is estimated to take 18.3 percent of the production inducement effect, 19.6 percent of the added value and 17.8 percent of the jobs created by the event.

While Seoul and the surrounding region is far away from the South Jeolla Province, its close ties with other regions’ economies is thought to be behind the large economic benefits it stands to gain from the event.

In addition, the economic boost brought by the event is projected to have longer lasting impact on the country’s economy.

The event is expected to aid the south coast of Korea in becoming an important economic hub that will play an essential role in the government’s drive to create seven economic regions.

The policy aims to create seven economic regions, one of which spans North and South Jeolla Provinces, with each spanning across a wide region to facilitate geographically balanced economic growth.

In addition to these benefits, the Yeosu expo is expected to act as a catalyst for boosting the country’s marine tourism and leisure industries as well as aiding advances in marine technologies.

With the event focusing on marine issues, organizers of the event expect that it will act as an opportunity for boosting research and development efforts in a wide range of related areas including marine resource development, and technologies for removing pollutants from the seas and forecasting climate change.

Such advances in marine sciences will in turn aid South Korea in improving its overall technological capabilities.

(cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)