By UN Journal Kayla Lee

Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang In-sun held a campaign for safe overseas travel at Incheon International Airport's Terminal 1 on March 27. Daniel Lindemann and Lucky, media personalities in Korea, also participated in the campaign.

Last year, about 22 million Koreans traveled abroad, -- 79% of the 28 million in 2019 before the outbreak of COVID-19 -- with the number expected to recover to the pre-pandemic level this year. 

Amid this expected increase in overseas travel, this campaign was launched to raise awareness and provide useful information on safe overseas travel. In particular, the campaign focused on encouraging people to check travel information, including specific information about safety in their destination countries, on the Safe Overseas Travel website (www.0404.go.kr) or the relevant mobile application before departure, and to contact the Consular Call Center to get help in the event that they become involved in any kind of incident or accident during their stay abroad.

Furthermore, Vice Minister Kang visited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Passport Service Center located in Terminal 1 and checked the system to issue emergency passports for Korean nationals. 

Vice Minister Kang pointed out that the number of Korean nationals visiting the Passport Service Center is expected to increase as the number of outbound Korean tourists grows. 

She also asked the Passport Service Center to double its efforts to ensure that Korean nationals, who encounter unexpected difficulties such as damage to their passports before departure, receive timely assistance including obtaining emergency passports.