| Title | Cheongju City Succeeded in Hosting the World’s First UNESCO International Organization in the Field of Documentary Heritage |
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| Writer | Cheongju Early Printing Museum |
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- UNESCO Approves the Establishment of the International Centre for Documentary Heritage (ICDH) at the 39th General Conference. -
○ Hosted the UNESCO International Center for Documentary Heritage Cheongju City (Mayor Lee Sung Hun) announced that Cheongju has succeeded in hosting the world's first UNESCO International Center for Documentary Heritage (ICDH) in the field of documentary heritage which was approved in the 39th General Conference held at UNESCO headquarters in Paris on November 6 at 3:30 pm, local time. This is a grand achievement for Cheongju City to host an international organization, which took a year's effort to ask for assistance for the establishment of the center to the UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information Frank La Rue, who visited Cheongju to award the <Jikji Memory of the World Prize> at the 1st Jikji Korea International Festival in 2016. Since an autonomous body cannot independently host an international organization but requires the government to apply, Cheongju City supervised the ' 2016 ICA Congress Korea' and through this, worked closely with the Korean National Commission for UNESCO, along with the National Archives of Korea (Ministry of the Interior and Safety), which has built a cooperative system with Jikji Korea, and this enabled the city to host an international organization targeting the global community. ○ Efforts Made by Cheongju City to Host the International Organization Currently, it is common for the operating international organizations approved by UNESCO in each field to have limited targets and scope by each continent or region such as the Asia-Pacific region unlike the ICDH, which targets the international community. However, the recently-approved ICDH targets the whole world and it is highly meaningful and valuable that an international organization is being built in the current field of documentary heritage for the first time ever. The city has driven the establishment of the center by laying out a meticulous strategy from the very beginning after signing an MOU on Mutual Cooperation for the Establishment of the ICDH with the National Archives of Korea and the Korean National Commission for UNESCO, avoiding excessive diplomatic attention considering the recent circumstances of UNESCO, and by a practical approach to actively target related experts and those involved in the practical affairs of the UNESCO Secretariat to ask for their support. In particular, National Archives of Korea (President: Lee Sang-jin) was at the heart of the efforts to actively induce prior cooperation among the ministries of the government, which served as great energy in the center application and process of approval. Last June, Dr. Roslyn Russell (Australia), the Chairperson of the Memory of the World National Committee and Rapporteur of the Bureau of the International Advisory Committee of the Memory of the World,(hereinafter “MoW“), came to Korea as a member of the rapporteur group from UNESCO to conduct due diligence audit and visited Cheongju to evaluate the will and efforts of the Korean government, the establishment site and the preparation process, and met up with Cheongju Mayor Lee Sung Hun, President Lee Sang-jin of the National Archives of Korea, and high-ranking government officials. Dr. Roslyn Russell has visited Cheongju before to participate in the 1st <Jikji Memory of the World Prize> awards ceremony in 2005, and has good understanding of the contributory programs targeting less-developed countries supported by the city of Cheongju and the National Archives of Korea in the field of documentary heritage up until now, as well as the establishment site prepared by Cheongju, together led to the rapporteur's report highly recommending the establishment of the center in Cheongju. It all boils down to the fact that the tangible and intangible international network built by supporting the UNESCO <Jikji Memory of the World Prize> since 2005 had a powerful impact on the decision made for Cheongju to host the center. ○ Future Operational Directions When UNESCO and the Korean government sign an agreement around next February upon the approval at the General Conference, Cheongju City and the National Archives of Korea will launch an establishment planning team for administrative and financial aid to ensure the stable establishment and operation of the center. ICDH will be given its legal status as an international organization in the form of a special corporation and will mostly push forward the international support and operational programs in the field of documentary heritage. In particular, to support the effective implementation of the UNESCO MoW business and to enhance the international capabilities of safe preservation and universal approach of human documentary heritage, the city will take charge of the following supporting businesses for UNESCO MoW business. ① R&D on the policies for preserving and approaching the global documentary heritage based on the experience and cooperation of diverse countries. ② Develop and perform educational programs befitting the demands of each country focusing on less-developed countries. ③ Promote MoW and its achievements. And, ④ take charge of supporting businesses of MoW business such as monitoring the listed documents on the MoW for their continuous management. Moreover, this example of successful hosting of ICDH can be seen as a model example for successfully having pushed forward the hosting in cooperation between the central and local governments and international organizations. ○ Effects on Regional Economy and Culture As Cheongju City is hosting the UNESCO ICDH, it is expected to transform into a world-famous international city not to mention its leading role the field of MoW. In addition, it is anticipated to bring about the revitalization of the regional economy and also the rapid improvements for Cheongju to turn into an international city, through new job creation and opportunities granted for the region's youths offered in the name of international organization and the influx of international elite manpower. A city official revealed in relation to the operation of the center saying, "The site and the building are supported by Cheongju City in kinds, but the annual operating expenses will be aided by the government, which will therefore be the turning point for the city to promote regional development and promulgate the creative value of Jikji home and abroad once the center is run in full scale." * For more info: Cheongju Early Printing Museum Operation Business Division Jikji Business Team (043-201-4281) |
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