A United Nations agency specializing in information and communication technologies will hold its top-level decision-making conference in South Korea in October, with ministerial-level representatives from 193 member states participating, organizers said Thursday.

The 19th International Telecommunications Union plenipotentiary conference will be held in Busan, the country's largest port city 453 kilometers southwest of Seoul, from Oct. 20 through Nov. 7.

The representatives will discuss and decide on key pending issues in the global ICT sector.

During the conference that opens every four years, participants will make decisions on the budget and the policy for the next four years and elect five ITU executives.

South Korea is a candidate to lead the ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector, known as ITU-T, which has the final say in setting the telecommunication standards.

Items to be highlighted on the agenda include prospects of sustainable growth based on ICTs, convergence of ICTs and other industries such as the medical field, and cyber security.

South Korea is hosting the ITU meeting for the first time.  It is also the first time in 20 years that the session is held in Asia.  The Japanese city of Kyodo had hosted the meeting in 1994.

South Korea is planning multiple events on the sidelines of the conference to showcase the development and future vision of the country's broadcasting and telecommunication technologies.

An ICT Expo will be held from Oct.20-23 to introduce brand new ICT products and technologies, while a global ICT premier forum is planned Oct. 27-28 for leading scholars and corporate chief executives to discuss changes and future of ICT.

The meeting also will provide opportunities to experience South Korean pop-culture, known as "the Korean wave" or "hallyu."

South Korea's Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning launched a preparatory committee and a planning group for the ITU conference last October. The ministry said it expects the conference to raise the brand value of South Korea and Busan and

provide local companies with a chance to tap into overseas markets.

The conference will likely generate an economic ripple effect of some 712 billion won ($677.2 million) as about 3,000 participants and 300,000 tourists are expected to visit the country, the ministry said. (Yonhap News)