Candidate Yibong Lee: "Balanced Development, New Social System and Fresh Sensibility Urgently Needed"

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Lee Yong-bin, a preliminary candidate for the National Assembly representing Gwangsan-gap, Gwangju Metropolitan City from the Democratic Party of Korea, stated on the 7th, "For the first time in history, the population of the Seoul metropolitan area has surpassed 50% of South Korea's total population," adding, "A new social system and new sensibilities are urgently needed to solve the issue of balanced development we are facing."

Candidate Lee emphasized, "The solution to the concentration of population in the metropolitan area must start with an accurate diagnosis of our reality. We are living in an era where everything is contracting?population, economic growth, regional competitiveness?and the period of the population cliff is imminent," and added, "It is impossible to solve the problems we face with existing methods."

As alternatives, he proposed ▲ the input of substantial triggering resources ▲ connecting the livelihood economy with future value ▲ creating regions that cultivate a foundation for a life to dream of and nurture talent.

Candidate Lee said, "The core of balanced development is the input of triggering resources," and explained, "We must promote the second phase of relocating public institutions remaining in the metropolitan area, organically connect them with existing growth resources, and build a stronger balanced development ecosystem so that economies of scale can be realized in the regions."

He continued, "The core of balanced development is the connection between the livelihood economy and future value," and suggested, "Gwangsan-gu is a key axis for balanced development in Gwangju and Honam. We must continuously build connections so that the current economic base and future economic foundations such as the AI cluster, Bitgreen Industrial Complex, former military airport site, Kumho Tire relocation site, Gwangju Songjeong Station KTX investment leading district, and free economic zone are not segmented from the livelihood economy."

Furthermore, he explained, "The core of balanced development is creating regions that cultivate a foundation for a life to dream of and nurture talent," adding, "It is necessary to simultaneously work on establishing a solid foundation for life (housing, jobs, living environment, education) and fostering excellent talent, thereby driving regional growth led by citizens."

He concluded, "Balanced development will accelerate if local autonomy and decentralization are prioritized," and advised, "While industrial and regional policies alone cannot fully resolve everything, at least we must not miss the timing."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.