Chair of the G20 Korea Coordinating Committee Sakong Il explains to Invest Korea Journal what hosting the G20 Summit means for the country and her future leadership role

What is the overall significance of Korea hosting the G20 Summit in November and how do you expect the Summit to affect Korea's position on the global stage? 

As you are aware, the G20 is a group of 20 most economically influential countries in the world. Moreover, the G20 is supposed to assume the role of informal global steering committee for economic and financial affairs of the world. That said, it is certainly a historical event for Korea to chair and host the G20 Summit. 

In light of the scope of the G20 Seoul Summit, it is a daunting challenge for Korea. The Korean government, more specifically the Presidential Committee for the G20 Summit, is making every effort to make the Seoul Summit another success and is working in collaboration with other G20 member countries, all major multilateral institutions -- including the IMF, World Bank, Financial Stability Forum (FSB), the OECD and the World Trade Organization (WTO) -- as well as leading global think tanks. If Korea exerts her leadership in producing deliverables and implementable measures for the global economy, respect for the country's leadership stature on the global stage will rise. I should mention that the outcome of the Seoul Summit is significant not only for Korea, but also for the G20 process itself. 

How was Korea chosen as host of the 2010 G20 Summit? 

I would single out three critical factors involved for the choice. First, it is President Lee Myung-Bak's leadership exerted at the previous summits and on various occasions. For example, President Lee proposed a standstill on protectionism at the first G20 Summit in Washington D.C. which is considered to be one of the most important achievements of the G20 so far.