News Summary:

• Cisco and South Korea are collaborating on digitization projects aimed at fostering digital inclusion and supporting the government’s broader pandemic recovery measures

• Cisco is investing in key areas like 5G, smart factories, cloud and next-generation IT skills development

• Initiatives are aligned to the country’s Digital New Deal strategy which seeks to bolster Korea’s industrial competitiveness, overall digital capacity and economic resilience

Seoul, Korea – April 14, 2021 – Today, South Korea, Asia’s fourth-largest economy, and Cisco, a worldwide leader in technology, announced the launch of a collaborative framework under Cisco’s Country Digital Acceleration (CDA) program to accelerate digitization across the country and power an inclusive recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The framework was introduced at a virtual event attended by Fran Katsoudas, Executive Vice President and Chief People, Policy & Purpose Officer at Cisco, Guy Diedrich, Vice President and Global Innovation Officer at Cisco, and Bum-Coo Cho, President at Cisco Korea, with opening remarks from South Korea’s Prime Minister, Sye-Kyun Chung, Chairman of the National Assembly’s Science, ICT, Broadcasting, and Communications Committee, Won-Wook Lee, and the People Power Party’s floor spokesperson Hyung-Du Choi. The event was also joined by ecosystem partners Naver Cloud, Samsung Electronics, and Kwangwoon University, who outlined the scope of their collaboration on major CDA projects in South Korea.  

The CDA program in Korea is strategically aligned with the government’s Digital New Deal strategy which is designed to propel recovery measures from the pandemic and help prepare for future growth through advanced digital capacity. The program also follows the government’s I-Korea 4.0, a policy brand that aims to prepare the Fourth Industrial Revolution with intelligent technologies.

“Cisco has helped the digital transformation in education by offering free video conferencing solutions to education institutions during these difficult times. I would like to express my sincere appreciation to Cisco for its support and commitment to making the future bright through social investment in various areas such as IT talent cultivation. I expect IT companies like Cisco to closely work with public institutions and universities, creating synergy in fostering people-centered digital infrastructure. The government will spare no effort to provide support for it,” said Prime Minister Chung.

“Our CDA programs help power an inclusive future for all through innovative technology initiatives like our 5G and cloud infrastructure solutions. We are very pleased to introduce the program in South Korea and support the government and businesses in achieving their economic and digitization goals as we recover from the global pandemic together,” said Fran Katsoudas, EVP and Chief People, Policy & Purpose Officer at Cisco.

The CDA program in South Korea will drive various initiatives, with specific focus on the following areas:

• 5G B2B: Cisco will drive 5G B2B technology innovation by working closely with Kwangwoon University. Cisco will help develop and test new 5G network solutions to bring more value to enterprises and enhanced network experiences to customers. 

• Cloud: Cisco will integrate its cloud solutions with the largest Korean cloud vendor ‘Naver Cloud’ to run on the cloud market. Cisco will provide convenient and reliable services to customers and will be able to promote cloud market activation. Cisco will strengthen the hybrid-cloud enablement in Korea.  

• Smart factory: Cisco will contribute to South Korea’s social-economic development with its industry-leading security and cloud technologies. Cisco will collaborate with POSCO ICT, a global IT & OT solutions provider, to develop advanced security solutions for smart factories by integrating Cisco Stealthwatch with POSCO ICT’s Poshield solution.  

• Education: Cisco will support digital transformation in education by offering free solutions and equipment to educational institutions across the country. Cisco will continue its commitment to digitization in education by expanding its support for building connected smart campuses and offering more Cisco Networking Academy programs. As part of these efforts, Cisco will integrate its collaboration solutions with Learning Management Systems (LMSs) of universities and support students and IT workforce with next generation IT skills and knowledge.

“The launch of CDA in Korea will be a significant step towards turning the country’s digital agenda into a reality. Cisco Korea will do its best to accelerate the digital and economic growth of the country by leading development of technologies and infrastructure, adoption and use of technologies both in the public and privates, and cultivating the next generation IT talents,” said Bum-Coo Cho, President at Cisco Korea.

Cisco’s CDA program aims to stimulate global digitization. Currently, Cisco is working with national, state, and local governments in 40 countries around the world to accelerate their national digitization agendas, co-develop cutting-edge solutions, and deliver beneficial services to their citizens more effectively. Cisco CDA programs have supported the creation of net-new jobs, GDP growth, and helped nurture innovation ecosystems.

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