Greetings from the Mayor

To all our fellow global citizens!

Welcome to Incheon, an aspiring global metropolis well on its way to becoming the world’s best city. 

I am Yoo Jeong-Bok, Mayor of Incheon Metropolitan City.

When examining some of the largest cities around the world, one common feature is a population base of over one million people, along with seaport and airport, as well as advanced, highly sophisticated elements in history, culture, transportation, logistics, industry and economy.  

Incheon has Korea's largest Free Economic Zone and is home to Incheon International Airport, which you may be familiar with, as it serves approximately 90% of the nation's international routes. Additionally, Incheon stands out as a creative city with excellent tangible and intangible infrastructure across newly developed international cities of Songdo, Yeongjong, and Cheongna as well as the Incheon Free Economic Zone (IFEZ). This unique combination provides the City with the ‘potential to grow independently’ within its surrounding circumstances.

Moreover, Incheon is a staunch advocate of APEC which is dedicated to overcoming economic, social, and cultural barriers among Pacific Rim countries and contributing to the region’s sustainable economic growth in its pursuit of bringing the entire Asia-Pacific together as one community. The City, in particular, strongly supports APEC's three core agendas: Interconnected, Innovative and Inclusive.

With 15 international organizations and global universities based in Incheon, the City is perfectly positioned to achieve all three goals pursued by APEC: trade and investment, innovation and digital economy, and inclusive and sustainable growth.

The reason Incheon is an attractive investment destination lies in its advanced industrial infrastructure and the necessary competitiveness to foster sustainable growth. The City’s policies adhere to a simple but essential principle: companies can prosper together with the City only if they remain profitable. With this in mind, Incheon continues to nurture its industries, particularly focusing on advanced industries for future growth.

In fact, Incheon attracts more than half of all inbound foreign direct investments (FDI) into Korea's eight Free Economic Zones (FEZs). This demonstrates that global companies’ recognition of Incheon as more competitive than any other city in the country is largely attributed to Incheon International Airport and Incheon Port, coupled with direct access to a massive market of 27 million people in the greater capital region. 

In particular, Incheon serves as the hub for the world's largest bio-pharmaceutical production facilities and hosts the world's second and third largest semiconductor packaging companies. Unsurprisingly, the City’s primary export item is semiconductor packaging. In addition, Incheon offers robust incentives to the renewable energy sector and actively seeks new growth engines, including the drone industry and the urban air mobility (UAM) industry, along with bio-technology, hydrogen, and secondary batteries.

Meanwhile, Incheon is taking proactive measures to address climate change and respond to natural disasters. As you are well aware, humanity faces threats from natural disasters caused by climate change. Incheon has declared its commitment to achieving complete carbon neutrality by 2045, investing significant financial resources to confront this global challenge. 

As a champion of climate action, the City is doing its utmost to implement a diverse range of urban climate safety policies, such as vulnerability assessments to enhance climate adaptation, the development of disaster response manuals, and the reinforcement of infrastructure for disaster preparedness. Additionally, Incheon strives to cooperate with the international community to contribute to global environmental efforts.

Incheon is a ‘City of World Peace.’ We consider it our duty to remember and express our gratitude to the heroes who dedicated themselves to the freedom and peace of humanity. It is also our mission to preserve their legacy—our freedom and peace—forever.

During the Korean War in 1950, the Incheon Landing Operation took place off the waters of Incheon, involving 261 ships and 75,000 Allied troops from eight different countries. In remembrance of their noble sacrifice and victory, Incheon has declared itself as a ‘City of World Peace’, with its own modern iteration of the Operation.

On June 5, 2023, the Overseas Koreans Agency opened in Songdo, Incheon, marking the beginning of Incheon’s journey to become the business hub for all Koreans worldwide. Notably, Incheon is where the first Korean emigrants departed 120 years ago, and now their descendants form a network of seven million Koreans across the world.

With the launch of Overseas Koreans Agency and through a successful bid to host the 2025 APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting, Incheon will usher in ‘the 3rd Open Port Era’, opening the hearts of all global citizens. Korea's industrialization and modernization began in 1883 when Incheon Port was opened to connect this city to the rest world by sea.

Since then, Incheon has played an indispensable role in the nation’s international trade and endured drastic changes in society, including politics, economy, and culture on the Korean Peninsula. This has contributed to Incheon’s growth into an inclusive city, excelling at addressing challenges posed by social and cultural differences.  

In 2001, Incheon embarked on its ‘2nd Open Port Era’ in the skies with the launch of Incheon International Airport. In 2023, the City welcomed the ‘3rd Open Port Era’, extending its reach to the world. Incheon envisions unity with the world in the 3rd Open Port Era through the ‘Reopening of Oceans, New Waves of Change.’

As Mayor, my dream is to transform Incheon into the best global future city, propelling the growth of the Republic of Korea. Incheon, a land of opportunity safeguarded with the great spirit of global citizens and a city of creativity, can turn this dream into reality.  

I look forward to your interest and support as Incheon takes its next leap into the future. Thank you.