The Korean Culture and Information Service (KOCIS) has launched a project to expand opportunities for foreigners to experience aspects of Korean, the culture ministry said Wednesday.
The KOCIS is a subsidiary organization under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and is charged with spreading Korea's culture overseas.
"The Cultural Companion Project (CCP) aims to offer diverse programs that educate foreign residents about the history, culture and literature of Korea," KOCIS said through a press release. "The motto of the program is to ‘stroll, imagine and enjoy' together with Koreans."
The three major programs that the project will offer is visiting UNESCO heritages, discussing Korean literature, and engaging in cultural performances.
Visiting the UNESCO heritage sites will begin in March and will be offered in eight sessions. Participation is open to diplomats, resident employees, and foreign press. A cultural heritage expert will accompany every visit, explaining the historical background of the listed heritages. Details of the program are available on the KOCIS website, www.kocis.go.kr.
The literature program is open to Korean and foreign university students who will team up to study Korean literature. The students will select a topic on a historical figure or philosophy and research and discuss the topic. Recruitment notice will be sent out in March and the program will run from April through June.
The third program is "Hello Mr. K (Korea)" a cultural performance project where Korean performers will visit foreigner-concentrated areas and hold performances there. The aim is to involve foreigners into the performance and familiarize them with Korean culture. KOCIS plans to collaborate with local municipalities and companies that have many foreign employees for the project.
The organization also plans to financially support other Korean culture-promoting projects carried out by non-profit organizations, schools and associations. Registration of the projects will be open from Feb. 16 until 24 at the KOCIS homepage.
The KOCIS works closely with some 30 overseas Korean culture centers. In recent years, it has focused on creating quality content for online and offline promotions of Korea.
The KOCIS published a series of books on the history of hallyu movement in sports, entertainment, classical music and literature in 2012. KOCIS, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2011, conducts an annual project to invite members of the foreign media to visit here as part of the government's efforts to promote Korea overseas.
Veteran cultural official Kim Jae-won has been leading the organization since October 2014.