Korea 5th largest FDI partner of Bangladesh: Korean envoy

Korea is one of the biggest development partners of Bangladesh as the country has emerged as the 5th largest foreign direct investment (FDI) partner of Bangladesh.

Ambassador of Korea to Bangladesh, Park Young-sik said in his inaugural remarks during an international conference on Korean Culture in Bangladesh: Inter-Asian Communication and Transcultural Phenomenon held at SIMEC Institute of Technology in Dhaka on Friday.

He also emphasised the role of research in strengthening bilateral ties and hoped that the conference would generate new research ideas and enable a better understanding of Korean culture.

The conference was organized to mark the celebration of the 50-year bilateral relations between Korea and Bangladesh.

It was organized by the International Research Center of SIMEC Institute of Technology, Uttara, Dhaka, in collaboration with the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Bangladesh and supported by the Academy of Korean Studies.

Kyung Hee University Professor and Director of K-culture Contents Institute, Ahn Soong-beum, delivered a keynote paper during the session.

He underscored the importance of country-specific research to promote Korea's entertainment industry and culture on a global scale.

Prof Biswajit Das of Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, Dev Nath Pathak of South Asian University, New Delhi, Prof SM Shaheem Reza of Dhaka University, Prof Manosh Chowdhury of Jahangirnagar University, Hardina Ohlendorf of Mahidol International College, Thailand, spoke at the conference on various aspects of cross-cultural and media research.

Opening remarks were delivered by Dr. Sanjib Roy, chief coordinator of the International Research Center of SIMEC Institute of Technology.

The day-long conference was attended by scholars from different countries, including South Korea, India, and Mexico. University students from different backgrounds presented their studies on Korean Culture's influence in Bangladesh, focusing on four thematic areas: i) Communication and media practices, ii) Fandom, culture, and youth identity, iii) Culture industry, commerce, and exchange, and iv) Transcultural flow of globalization.

The conference provided insight into the cultural geography of the Global South.