Jeonnam Province Holds 'Public Institution Relocation Season 2 Policy Forum'

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] Jeonnam Province announced on the 16th that it held the ‘Public Institution Relocation Season 2 Policy Forum’ to explore desirable directions for the second phase of relocating public institutions from the Seoul metropolitan area for practical national balanced development.

The forum, held at the National Assembly Library Auditorium, was attended by Jeonnam Governor Kim Young-rok, former Democratic Party floor leader Woo Won-shik, Democratic Party Jeonnam Provincial Committee Chairman Seo Sam-seok, National Assembly member Min Hyung-bae, along with other lawmakers from the Honam region, experts, public officials, and journalists, totaling about 100 participants.

The forum began with a keynote presentation by Song Jae-ho, former chairman of the National Balanced Development Committee, on ‘Additional Relocation Plans for Public Institutions in the Seoul Metropolitan Area for National Balanced Development,’ followed by expert presentations and lively discussions on the promotion plan for ‘Innovation City Season 2’ and the necessity of the second relocation of public institutions from the metropolitan area.

In particular, Oh Byung-gi, senior research fellow at the Gwangju-Jeonnam Research Institute and the main presenter, stated, “During Season 1 of public institution relocation, mechanical allocation of relocated institutions still left disparities among non-metropolitan regions,” adding, “Season 2 should allocate relocated institutions differentially, considering the total number of public and administrative institutions by region.”

He also argued, “Mechanical equal distribution of relocated institutions without considering the existing total by region may run counter to the purpose of national balanced development,” and “When allocating relocated institutions differentially, it is necessary to consider using balanced development indicators announced by the Balanced Development Committee.”

Following this, the panel discussion was chaired by Professor Lee Min-won (Gwangju University), former chairman of the National Balanced Development Committee, with participants including Professor Lee Ki-won (Hallym University), Senior Research Fellow Oh Byung-gi (Gwangju-Jeonnam Research Institute), Professor Kang Hye-jung (Chonnam National University), Senior Research Fellow Song Mi-ryeong (Korea Rural Economic Institute), Director Lee Doo-hee (Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade), and Director Kim Jeong-hoon (Fiscal Policy Research Institute). They presented various opinions on differential allocation plans considering the total number of public institutions by region and fostering regional industries centered on innovation cities.

Jeonnam Governor Kim Young-rok said, “The achievements of Season 1 of public institution relocation are emerging, such as population and tax revenue increases and regional economic revitalization through job creation in innovation cities,” but added, “However, it is a reality that the first relocation alone is insufficient for growth as a ‘regional growth hub.’”

He also expressed hope that “this will be an opportunity to seek desirable strategies for ‘Public Institution Relocation to Local Areas Season 2’ to solve urgent issues in Korea such as metropolitan overpopulation and the crisis of local extinction, and to revitalize national balanced development by resolving development disparities among non-metropolitan regions.”

Meanwhile, Jeonnam Province formed a TF team led by the Deputy Governor for Political Affairs in April to respond to the relocation of public institutions from the metropolitan area. The team is proactively responding to Season 2 of public institution relocation by reviewing 23 target institutions and their linkage with local industries, and establishing attraction strategies and implementation tasks.

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