At the 41st World Scout Conference held in Baku Congress Center, Baku, Azerbaijan
on 16 August, 160 member countries voted on the host city of the 25th World Scout
Jamboree, which is to be held in 2023. Saemangeum, Korea was chosen as the host.
The word ‘jamboree’ was derived from a North American Indian word ‘shivaree’,
meaning “a lavish or boisterous celebration or party” and the 1920 world camping
contest was named the 1st World Scout Jamboree. Today there are national and
continental jamborees hosted around the world, generally every four years.
The intention of World Scout Jamboree is a gathering of our youths of tomorrow,
regardless of nationality, race, religion and language, for a period of camping and
common activities to foster friendship and development and contribute to national
development and world peace.
The youths around the world attending the jamboree are to build a temporary
“global tent city”, which is to include lodging, markets, hospitals and other facilities
just as an actual city. The citizens of this city are the youths who will lead our future
societies and they will also dominate the city.
The Scout Movement was first organized in England in 1907 and now it has
become a worldwide youth NGO attended by 40 million youths from 165 member
nations. The organization is also in mutually cooperative relationships with various
international bodies including UNICEF, ECOSOC, UNESCO and WHO.
The Korea Scout Association made noticeable growth and was awarded The Most
Successful National by the World Scout Committee. The 17th World Scout Jamboree
was hosted in Goseong, Gangwon-
do in 1991 attended by 133 member nations and the 38th World Scout Conference
was hosted in Jeju-do in 2008 attended by 156 member nations.
By hosting these two events, many youths and leaders from abroad visited Korea,
promoting cultural understanding and international status and reliability. It also
brought upon considerable economic benefits.
With the youths from around the world visiting Korea, they were able to perceive
our future and advocated the image of Korea through cultural understanding.
It also offered opportunities for them to be pro-Korea ambassadors.
By hosting the 25th World Scout Jamboree in 2023, we are able to attain the
following effects:
First, by hosting this enormous international event attended by over 50,000 youths
and 30 leaders from 160 countries, we are able to raise the national status and
brand value of Korea through Korean wave (Hallyu) cultural contents;
Second, because a jamboree is significantly less burdening financially compared to
the Olympics and World Cup, it is able to create high efficiency effects with a low
budget. It will be able to bring in an economic profit of at least 1 billion dollars,
resulting in state-level economic ripple effect;
Third, Korean youths will be able to strengthen their global competence.
In the purview of social structure, youths attending jamboree events are able to
develop proper character, sociality, leadership and occupational view as well as their
magnanimity, providing ample opportunities for them to grow into apt members of
the society; and
Fourth, the educational impact of jamboree demonstrates four definitive effects: one,
it improves human relations; two, it facilitates leading roles in social development;
three, it raises the sense of responsibility of a citizen; and four, it assists delinquent
youths to return to the right track.
A large gathering of youths and adults to pioneer, explore, communicate and debate,
jamborees are able to strengthen personal competence and fulfill the needs derived
from stress, anxiety and incongruity in social norms and becoming a model for character education.
【Ahn Byung-il is the secretary-general of the South Seoul Scout Council and an adjunct professor at Global Cyber University】