Busan is good

Busan City Holds Working-Level Consultations with Startup Genome and the Royal Government of Cambodia Delegation

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Busan City announced that on May 28 at 10:30 a.m. (local time), it held a working-level consultation in San Francisco with Startup Genome, a global startup ecosystem evaluation agency.

The meeting took place at Startup Genome’s headquarters and was attended by Lee Jun-seung, Vice Mayor for Administrative Affairs of Busan, and Joanne Fedeyko, Vice President of Startup Genome.

This meeting aimed to discuss the sustainable development and revitalization of Busan’s global startup ecosystem through organic cooperation between the City and Startup Genome.

Vice Mayor Lee began by expressing appreciation, stating,
“Busan entered the top 20 Asian cities in Startup Genome’s global startup ecosystem rankings for the first time in 2024. I am thankful to Startup Genome for recognizing our efforts.”

In response, Vice President Joanne Fedeyko said,
“Busan, along with Seoul, is a city we are closely watching in Korea. Its entry into the top 20 Asian startup cities last year reflects the city’s strong efforts to grow its startup ecosystem globally.”

Vice Mayor Lee further explained,
“Busan has been actively expanding its startup ecosystem by establishing the Busan Startup Investment Agency, creating a fund of over 100 billion KRW, and constructing global-level startup hub infrastructure.
However, compared to other global cities, Busan is still relatively new to the global ecosystem and has yet to receive the recognition it deserves in global rankings.”

Vice President Fedeyko agreed, stating,
“I believe Busan has strong potential to be ranked higher. We will strive to ensure Busan’s efforts are properly reflected in future evaluations through continuous cooperation.”

At the end of the meeting, Vice Mayor Lee highlighted Vice President Fedeyko’s role in founding the Canadian Women’s Network (CWN) to support marginalized women entrepreneurs.

He noted that her work aligns well with the purpose of the World Startup Cities Association (WSCA) that Busan is planning to launch, and asked for her interest and support in forming the WSCA.

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Meanwhile, on May 26 at 6:30 p.m. (local time), Busan also held a consultation with Vandeth CHEA, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications of Cambodia, during his visit to Silicon Valley for the opening ceremony of Plug and Play Cambodia.

Busan and the Cambodian government delegation reaffirmed their friendly relations established through the sister city agreement with Phnom Penh in 2009.

Both sides agreed to strengthen cooperation on common interests such as innovation, digital infrastructure, and startup promotion aimed at inclusive and sustainable development.

During the meeting, Vice Mayor Lee officially invited Minister CHEA to Fly Asia 2025, which the Minister showed keen interest in and expressed intent to attend.

Vice Mayor Lee also introduced the Letter of Intent between Busan and Plug and Play, and conveyed his hope that Phnom Penh would participate in the WSCA, which will be jointly promoted by Busan and Plug and Play.

The WSCA (World Startup Cities Association) is being established to strengthen global solidarity and leadership through cooperation and communication among startup cities.

Busan plans to launch the association in collaboration with Plug and Play.

To that end, the Busan Center for Creative Economy & Innovation is working with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and KOICA to formulate a detailed implementation plan in the second half of this year.

Minister CHEA expressed that Cambodia also has strong interest in economic development through startup ecosystem activation and intends to discuss cooperation with Phnom Penh upon his return.

Vice Mayor Lee and Minister CHEA concluded the meeting by agreeing to continue discussions for further cooperation in the startup ecosystem.

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Appendix 1. Summary of Working-Level Consultation with Startup Genome

• ●Date/Location: Startup Genome Headquarters

• ●Main Topics:

• ○Cooperation to improve Busan’s ranking and branding in global startup ecosystem evaluations

• ●Attendee:

• ○Joanne Fedeyko, Vice President of Startup Genome

• ●Background:

• ○Education: B.A. in Accounting, Northern Alberta Institute of Technology

• ○Career:

• ■Founder, Canadian Women’s Network (2017)

• ■Current Vice President, Startup Genome

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Appendix 2. Extract from Startup Genome’s 2024 Startup Ecosystem Report

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Appendix 3. Summary of Working-Level Consultation with Royal Government of Cambodia Delegation

• ●Date/Location: May, San Francisco

• ●Attendees:

• ○Busan City: Vice Mayor Lee Jun-seung, Startup & Venture Division (3 participants)

• ○Cambodia (9 participants):

• ■Vandeth CHEA, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications

• ■So Visothi, Vice Minister, Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications

• ■Keo Sothy, Vice Minister, Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications

• ■Hak Sokheng, Assistant Minister, Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications

• ■Sam Seserei, Director General, Department of Information and Communication Technology

• ■Chea Sereyvat, Secretary General, Digital Government Committee

• ■Cheng Butha, Deputy Secretary General, Digital Government Committee

• ■Tan Sokthearin, Deputy Director General, Minister's Office

• ■Bea Chantra, Vice President, Cambodia Academy of Digital Technology (CADT)

• ●Main Topics:

• ○Reaffirmation of friendly ties since the 2009 sister city agreement between Busan and Phnom Penh

• ○Cooperation on innovation, digital infrastructure, and startup promotion for sustainable development

• ○Exchange of knowledge and expertise in communication, digital innovation, and startup development

• ○Participation in related forums, exhibitions, and events hosted by either party

• ○Encouraging dialogue among public and private stakeholders for voluntary cooperation

• ○Informal exploration of joint workshops, technology exchanges, and capacity-building activities

• ○Sharing experiences on smart city approaches and digital governance-based solutions

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Appendix 4. Photos from Working-Level Consultation with Royal Government of Cambodia Delegation