KOTRA President Kim Jae-hong gives a speech at the 2015 Good to Great Business Plaza at Lotte Hotel in Seoul in May.

Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) won the Presidential Award in sustainable management category of Korea National Quality Award at the 41st National Quality Management Convention at COEX Auditorium in Seoul on Nov. 18.

KOTRA, established in 1962 with the goal of building a trading power, is credited for contributing to the development of the Korean export industry, as the public entity played a part in Korea’s achieving a “triple crown” in 2014 for the third consecutive year. A triple crown is when a nation records trade of $1 trillion or more, record high exports and record high trade surplus. 

KOTRA has been devoting itself to serving customers, the state and society by supporting the marketing of SMEs and their exploration of overseas markets, attracting foreign direct investments, surveying overseas information, and the creation of overseas jobs. Regarding overseas exhibitions, the gem of marketing tools, KOTRA will help 2,600 Korean companies access global markets this year. In cooperation with industrial associations and related companies, KOTRA communicates with stakeholders through diverse channels on topics ranging from a preparatory stage to post-project.

KOTRA has been carrying out its own sustainable management projects in the economics field. In 2012, the agency launched the Global Corporate Social Responsibility Project committed to contributing to society in a way its characteristics may be maximized. A representative case is KOTRA’s provision of support to Korean companies wanting to enter foreign markets by leveraging its standing when they are faced with local social problems. In 2014, KOTRA extended a helping hand to Korean disinfectant maker IZ-FOG by helping the company donate its products to disinfection authorities in such countries as Bangladesh and Myanmar. The company succeeded in landing exporting orders thanks to KOTRA’s assistance. The case represents a practice of KOTRA’s Global CSR Project, a move tailored to create common values of the local community in a win-win strategy in which the related company, local governments and local residents share benefits by contributing to protecting of the environment of the target countries. 

CSR projects related to the protection of the environment are on the rise every year, including local educational programs to enhance awareness of the environment by donating energy-conserving LEDs and other eco-friendly products. 

Yoon won-suk, head of KOTRA’s Information and Commerce Support Division, gives an opening speech at the 3rd Global CSR Forum at the KCCI building in Seoul on Nov. 19.(Photos:KOTRA)

Sustainable Management Activities in Cooperation with Value Chain Stakeholders

KOTRA is implementing CSR activities in Korea tailored to capitalize its own characteristics. A case in focus is the “Grow Together” program in which executives and staff members of foreign-investor companies, KOTRA’s stakeholders, as well as university volunteering groups carry out volunteering activities here. KOTRA implements a program to help foreign immigrants who got married and stay in Korea, foreign labor forces and children of multiethnic families in trading marketing experts. Through 2014, 187 people were selected, and 85 out of the total landed jobs or succeeded in embarking on startups. 

KOTRA is striving to redouble its sustainable management activities to make the most of its own capacity to promote shared growth of diverse stakeholders and related parties in Korea and abroad, including SMEs, foreign buyers, and foreign investors. The agency is devoting itself to overhauling its own sustainable management activities by aggressively introducing such global trends as human rights management, ethic management and environment management, and spreading it to its stakeholders. In particular, KOTRA will give a helping hand to SMEs so that they can introduce global standards in the sustainable management field, thus leading to enhancing their global capabilities. 

KOTRA will continue to strive to contribute to the country, society, all citizens and the future by developing and evolving its own sustainable management activities.