Exchange of experience in the field of infrastructure was discussed by Deputy Minister Yovev with the Deputy Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport of Korea Jong Kyung Hoon

Bulgaria and Korea can expand their cooperation in a number of areas of mutual interest. This became clear during a meeting in Seoul, Republic of Korea, of the Deputy Minister of Regional Development and Public Works Valentin Yovev with the Deputy Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport of Korea Jong Kyung Hoon.

It is of mutual interest the possibility for Korean construction companies to participate in the construction of a number of road infrastructure sites in Bulgaria on the principle of public-private partnership, it became clear during the conversation.

Before his Korean counterpart, Deputy Minister Yovev presented several infrastructure projects that could be implemented with foreign investment: the completion of the Hemus and Black Sea motorways, which are part of the European transport network; the Ruse-Veliko Tarnovo motorway in the direction of the Pan-European Transport Corridor No. 9; the Vidin-Botevgrad expressway; the tunnel under Shipka Peak in the Balkan Mountains and the tunnel facility under the Petrohan Pass.

 “The changes in the legal framework in our country reveal more opportunities for foreign investors, including Korean companies, to participate in the construction and modernisation of infrastructure through public-private partnerships,” Valentin Yovev said during the meeting.

He stressed that in recent years our country, represented by the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works, has been conducting an active dialogue at various levels with representatives of the Republic of Korea, which is important to continue in the future.

The Korean Deputy Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport expressed hope to expand cooperation between Bulgarian and Korean companies to implement more joint projects in the future, both in the field of infrastructure and in the field of regional development and cadastre. “I hope today’s meeting will be a turning point in a positive aspect, to promote Bulgarian-Korean relations,” said Jong Kyung Hoon.

In Seoul, Deputy Minister of Regional Development and Public Works Valentin Yovev also met with Cho Man Xung, vice president of the Korean Geospatial Information Corporation.

They talked about Korea’s cadastral information system and the main methods and innovative data collection technologies. During the conversation, the practical experience of the Korean side in the development of the cadastral register and geospatial data was discussed. Deputy Minister Yovev also got acquainted with the database management systems and Geographic Information Systems, as well as with the connections of the system with the registers of the Registry Agency used by the Korean Corporation.

 “Currently, Bulgaria continues to develop the cadastral map and cadastral registers on the territory of the country and their upgrade, modernisation and refinement is forthcoming,” Deputy Minister Yovev explained during the meeting. According to him, the Korean experience in this field would be useful for the Bulgarian Geodesy, Cartography and Cadastre Agency, especially in terms of operating methods, capacity and new technologies implemented in the Korean cadastral information system.

Cho Man Xung proposed the Bulgarian Deputy Minister that experts from the Geodesy, Cartography and Cadastre Agency should visit Seoul, where they could get acquainted with the Korean cadastral information system and join a joint training project.

In the South Korean capital, the Deputy Regional Minister also met with representatives of the International Contractors Association of Korea (ICAK). He presented to them the opportunities for public-private partnership in the field of road infrastructure in our country.

In Seoul, Deputy Minister Yovev participated in the second meeting of the Committee on Industrial Cooperation.