South Korea bags infection control conference

South Korea has secured an Asia Pacific infection control conference for the first time, on the back of hosting the world’s largest international lung cancer conference this month.

The 2030 Asia Pacific Society of Infection Control (APSIC) will take place in South Korea for the first time come August 2030. The winning bid was presented by the Korean Society for Healthcare-associated Infection Control and Prevention (KOSHIC), and supported by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the Seoul Tourism Organization and Korea Tourism Organization.

The conference is expected to bring together some 1,500 infection control specialists and healthcare professionals from across 10 Asia Pacific countries, including Singapore, Japan and Australia.

The win is KOSHIC’s third attempt to bring the conference to South Korea.

“Following two bids many years ago, KOSHIC has finally achieved this meaningful milestone on its third attempt. It was a great honor to present South Korea’s bid on behalf of KOSHIC at the APSIC Council Meeting, where we received overwhelming support and warm encouragement,” said Doo Ryeon Chung, who currently oversees KONIS, and is on the executive committee ASPIC. Among other roles, the infectious disease specialist also heads up the Asian Network for Surveillance of Resistant Pathogens, and serves as Secretary General of the Asia Pacific Foundation for Infectious Diseases.

The next edition of the biennial event is scheduled to take place in Vietnam come 2028, following the 12th congress that concluded this year in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

According to the Union of International Associations (UIA), Seoul hosted 216 international meetings in 2025, ranking third in the world and first in Asia. The city also ranked ninth globally in the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) rankings, remaining among the world’s top 10 for the third consecutive year.