Korea's MICE industry is booming — so why is its budget being cut?

South Korea's MICE industry — covering meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions — is growing rapidly, yet government support funding is being cut, a parliamentary audit revealed Wednesday. Despite being a high-value sector whose participants spend far more than ordinary tourists, reduced state funding is raising concerns about Korea's ability to compete for large international groups.

Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Kim Yun-deok raised the issue at a national audit of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism before the National Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee on Wednesday, calling for comprehensive support measures to address budget cuts to the MICE sector.

According to the Korea Tourism Organization's "2024 MICE Industry Statistics Research," released by Kim's office, Korea ranks second in the world by the Union of International Associations standard and 12th by the International Congress and Convention Association standard. The number of MICE events held in Korea in 2024 reached about 179,000, up 33 percent from the previous year. Total participants rose 53.9 percent to about 29.23 million, of whom roughly 1.998 million were foreign — a 30.7 percent increase.

The budget cut runs counter to the industry's clear growth momentum as well as the government's own key policy priorities. According to budget data presented by Kim's office, the government's proposed MICE industry development budget for 2027 totals 15.91 billion won ($11.8 million), down 1.45 billion won, or 8.4 percent, from 17.3 billion won in 2026.

Breaking down the cuts by program, the budget for corporate meetings and incentive tourism promotion stands at 5.94 billion won in the 2027 proposal, a 14.4 percent reduction from this year. The convention attraction and hosting support budget was also cut 11.7 percent to 6.99 billion won. The international events promotion program for overseas market participation was trimmed 20.5 percent to 1.16 billion won, and the regional MICE industry support budget fell 0.9 percent to 5.26 billion won — meaning nearly all frontline attraction and support programs, excluding statistical research and operations, have been reduced.

Kim cited two cases to illustrate the consequences of the cuts: this year, a shortage of international conference hosting funds cost Korea a 1,000-person Malaysian corporate group and a 4,000-person Indian corporate group, both of which went to China, which lured them with low-cost hotels.

Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Choi Hwi-young, who attended the audit, said the related budget had been reduced in the 2027 government proposal because priorities had been assessed differently during negotiations with fiscal authorities, and the ministry had not been able to secure the funding it had hoped for.

Kim said it was hard to accept an explanation that amounted to little more than "fiscal authorities ranked it lower and the ministry is disappointed," given the growing importance of the MICE industry alongside the broader tourism sector. "Cutting the budget for a core program that circulates money to small and mid-sized businesses in each region, while calling for locally driven growth, is a policy contradiction," Kim said.

The audit also highlighted that attracting international conferences is a key channel for raising the brand profile of cities and drawing in opinion leaders. Because overseas participants act as "big speakers" who spread word of mouth, the argument was made that policy support should be concentrated now, while the tide is coming in.

Minister Choi said the MICE industry is "a high-value core sector where per-person spending by participants is more than double that of ordinary tourists, unlike general group tourism." He added that while the ministry had been unable to secure the funding it wanted due to differing priority assessments during the budget process, it would submit a document outlining its commitment and specific measures during the remaining parliamentary budget deliberations.

The question-and-answer session also drew attention to how hosting MICE events generates economic activity far beyond convention halls — driving revenue for accommodation, food, transport, shopping and event planning businesses, and benefiting local small merchants and the broader regional ecosystem. A proactive injection of government funding is urgently needed to support genuine balanced regional development, analysts said.

Kim urged the ministry to move beyond the proposed cuts and instead draw up a plan to increase the MICE budget. "MICE is a high-value industry that spreads economic warmth to hotels, restaurants, transport, shopping and local small businesses, and it is central to job creation," Kim said. "The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism must prepare a forward-looking budget increase — not the existing reduction — to foster the MICE industry as a core pillar of inbound tourism."