The Korea Public Procurement Expo 2017 kicks off Wednesday, seeking to reach out to a wide range of global buyers.

It is held by the state-run Public Procurement Service. The number of international buyers participating in the annual event this year will reach 114 from 25 countries, a 8 percent increase from the previous year, which had 106 from 24 nations, according to PPS Administrator Chung Yang-ho, in an interview with The Korea Herald.

Among the buyers this year, 75 will be from the United States including the Government Contracting Alliance.


“We are widening the range of nations invited to the event this year and increasing the chance of securing procurement deals,” Chung said. “This will mark its shift from a domestic expo to a global one.”

In the past events, the participating buyers were mostly from Asian countries, mainly from Central Asia, Chung added.

The three-day expo is also expected to provide opportunities for job seekers in Korea to receive employment counseling from public and private institutions.

“The PPS and I are tasked with helping the new industry here gain a competitive edge, invigorating small enterprises and creating jobs,” said Chung, who took office in February 2016.

The Korea Public Procurement Expo, which began in 2000, is designed to offer a platform for the products of local startups and small enterprises that need government-led procurement to expand their businesses.

This year, 285 enterprises applied to set up booths at the expo -- the largest in number since the event began. The participating enterprises rose 13.5 percent from a year ago.

The event will take place at Kintex exhibition hall in Ilsan, Gyeonggi Province.

The PPS’ aim to expand procurement deals through the expo comes in line with the projected 4.6 billion won ($4.03 million) investment in the research and development of drones, which by May 2018 at the earliest would enable quadcopters to be available for public procurement in the global market, according to Chung.

“We are seeking business expansion of promising products such as drones on the groundwork of public sectors,” Chung said. 

By Lee Kwon-hyung (kwonhl@heraldcorp.com) and Son Ji-hyoung (consnow@heraldcorp.com)