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[Herald Economy — Reporter Seo Jae-geun] The Korea International Trade Association (KITA) and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said on March 27 that they held the 19th graduation ceremony and the 20th launch ceremony for the Regional-Industry Tailored Young Trade Experts Program (GTEP) at COEX in Samseong-dong, Gangnam District, Seoul.
About 350 people attended the event, including KITA Chairman Yoon Jin-sik, Na Seong-hwa, Director of Trade Policy at the ministry, program directors, faculty advisers and students from the 20 universities participating in GTEP nationwide.
Launched in 2007, GTEP aims to train practice-ready professionals who can be deployed immediately to export operations. Including the 681 graduates from the 19th cohort, the program has produced roughly 12,000 trade specialists to date. Alumni now serve across trading firms, logistics companies, manufacturers and export-support organizations, helping to alleviate industry labor shortages and bolster export performance.
Over the past 15 months, the 19th cohort completed more than 480 hours of intensive training, combining trade practice, field internships and region-specific instruction tailored to six key markets, including the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Latin America. In collaboration with 1,074 university-industry partner companies nationwide, the program supported both online and offline marketing efforts—such as participation in overseas trade shows and listings on e-commerce platforms—and achieved a total of $20.65 million in export value.
Soonchunhyang University’s team, presented as a best-practice example at the ceremony, used recent online marketing techniques—SEO (search engine optimization) and AEO (answer engine optimization)—to boost a partner company’s Amazon e-commerce revenue to $800,000, drawing significant attention.
Student team member Ko Myung-su said, “Working with partner companies to develop export strategies gave me the foundation to start a trade-consulting business.”
In his opening remarks, KITA Chairman Yoon Jin-sik described GTEP as “our country’s flagship program for training trade professionals,” noting that government, universities and industry have joined forces to cultivate talent that will lead future trade and support export growth. “Even amid a rapidly changing global trade environment, we will continue to develop trade professionals who can set the pace for the next era,” he added.
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