"15,000 Water Industry Businesses and 43 Trillion KRW in Sales" ... First Statistics After Water Management Integration

Asia Economy DB/Goyang=Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The number of water industry businesses in South Korea reaches approximately 15,000, with sales amounting to about 43.25 trillion KRW.

The Ministry of Environment will publish the "2018 Water Industry Statistical Survey Report," which investigates and analyzes the general status of the domestic water industry, on the 16th. The water industry statistics are nationally approved statistics that annually survey water industry businesses nationwide regarding employment numbers and sales scale per company.

This report was prepared based on survey results of business activities from January to December 2018, targeting businesses with at least one employee engaged in water industry activities.

According to the survey results, the number of domestic water industry businesses was 15,473, accounting for 0.38% of all businesses in the country. Total sales amounted to 43.2506 trillion KRW, representing 2.2% of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 43% of total sales in the environmental industry. The number of workers in the water industry was estimated at 183,800, and water industry exports were estimated at 1.93 trillion KRW.

The water industry sector is characterized by a high proportion of public sector involvement (40.3%) and a low number of companies engaged in research and development (R&D) activities (13.3% of all companies). To strengthen the competitiveness of the water industry in the future, it was found necessary to focus support on private companies obtaining certifications and patents.

This report is significant as the first water industry statistical survey report prepared after the unification of water management. Before the unification, differences in the scope and classification criteria of the water industry among government ministries made it difficult to grasp the domestic water industry status.

Since the unification of water management in June 2018, the Ministry of Environment has finalized a new scope and classification system for the water industry, including the water resources sector transferred from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, which was previously focused on water supply and sewage statistics.

Detailed information on this report can be found on the Water Market Comprehensive Information Center website (www.wabis.or.kr).

The Ministry of Environment plans to actively utilize the survey results in establishing and implementing water industry promotion policies. Kim Dong-jin, Director of the Water Resources Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Environment, stated, "We will continue research and efforts to improve statistical quality so that water industry statistics can faithfully support the establishment and implementation of water industry policies."

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