Gangdong-gu (Mayor: Lee Hae-Sik) has officially begun preparations for the opening of an executive office for the 7th Seoul Urban Agriculture Expo, which will be jointly hosted by Seoul City and Gangdong-gu.

Seoul has made the decision to select a district to jointly host the 2018 Seoul Urban Agriculture Expo, which had previously been organized solely by the city, to disseminate the value of urban agriculture and vision of Seoul urban agriculture, and invigorate urban agriculture in the city’s districts.

Following a highly competitive selection process, Gangdong-gu was chosen to host the Expo owing to its abundant human and material resources, which are based on its various urban agricultural achievements since 2009, and know-how acquired from the Urban Agricultural Festival & Exposition, which it has been managing for the past 7 years.

Seoul is offering full district-level support through a Promotion Committee comprised of urban agriculture experts, activists, and horticulture/gardening experts that was assembled in December of last year, and it is also opening an executive office for the Expo in January. The city plans to take the Seoul Urban Agriculture Expo to the next level by highlighting the strengths of Gangdong-gu's urban agriculture sector, encouraging participation from other districts and through cooperation with various related institutions such as the Agricultural Technology Center.

The executive office will be located on the 4th floor of Gangdong-gu Office Bldg. #2 and will be responsible for the general organization of the Expo, including planning, management, and administrative support. Other duties will include hosting meetings with related departments, promoting cooperation with external institutions, and managing private and public organizations related to the Expo, such as the Promotion Committee and Executive Subcommittee. The 7th Seoul Urban Agriculture Expo 2018 will be held at Iljasan Mountain Natural Park (Urban Agriculture Park, Grass Square, 1st Gymnasium) in Gangdong-gu for 4 days, from May 17 (Thu.) to May 20 (Sun.), and will feature an Urban Agriculture Hall under the theme of 'Urban Agriculture and Job Positions,' a Business Hall, activity programs, Baeum Madang, international conferences, and other events.

Gangdong-gu will seek to enhance the status of the Expo by encouraging participation and cooperation from numerous districts, and will design the event to be a place for seeking development plans and sharing the vision of urban agriculture, including expansion of its value, job creation, and so on. The district plans to create a public-friendly event by making the Citizens' Cabinet Garden, Idea Garden, and photo exhibition featured events at the Gangdong-gu Urban Agriculture Expo.

The mayor of Gangdong-gu said, "We are honored to be holding the 7th Seoul Urban Agriculture Expo in Gangdong-gu, and we hope that this joint event will be mutually beneficial by invigorating and developing urban agriculture, both through the solidification of Seoul as an urban agricultural city, and by disseminating Gangdong-gu's urban agriculture across the nation. We will create a fun and worthwhile Expo so that our citizens can learn about, experience, and enjoy urban agriculture."

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