The Republic of Korea (RoK) will hold a series of events this September in an effort to promote cultural exchange with members of the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The RoK Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said on August 27 that it will hold the first meeting of RoK-ASEAN culture ministers, an Asian journalists’ forum and a performance of an orchestra composed of various traditional musical instruments of the countries among others in Gwangju city, 329 km south of Seoul.

These events aim to promote the Asian Culture Complex, a national multipurpose cultural facility now under construction, which is part of a broader government project to develop the city into a cultural hub in Asia.

The culture ministers’ meeting will be held on September 6 to discuss ways to further cultural cooperation among the countries.

RoK Culture Minister Yoo Jin-ryong will meet with his counterparts from the 10 ASEAN member nations to discuss how to lay the ground for cultural cooperation and develop Asian culture.

Journalists covering cultural issues in 14 Asian countries, including the RoK, Japan and China , will gather at a forum on September 5 to talk about the role of mass media for the prosperity of Asian culture.

On the same day, visitors to Gwangju can see a rare performance of an orchestra composed of 54 sorts of different traditional musical instruments of the RoK and the Southeast Asian countries.-VNA