Song Guigun, Governor of Goheung County, Fully Launches Future Vision 1.3.0 Plan

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Chunsu] The second year of the 7th term of the Gohung County government, launched with an emphasis on integrity, has been a meaningful period of change, with efforts recognized by receiving an A grade in the Korea Manifesto evaluation for pledge fulfillment.

On the 23rd, Song Gwigeun, the governor of Gohung County, held a press conference marking the 2nd anniversary of the 7th term at the county office’s Uju Hall, attended by about 60 people including reporters covering the county and heads of departments, presenting the major achievements of the past two years and the direction for county development for the remaining term.

Governor Song reflected that the past two years were an important period for establishing and actively promoting the comprehensive plan of the 7th term’s goal, ‘Future Vision 1.3.0,’ aimed at the development of Gohung through change and reform.

The ‘1·3·0 Plan’ aims to bring Gohung County’s annual budget to the 1 trillion won level, increase per capita income of residents to over 30 million won, and reduce the county’s annually declining population decrease rate to zero.

In this regard, the number of farming and fishing households earning over 100 million won increased by 497 households from 809 in 2016 to 1,306 in 2019, while the registration rate of Korean beef cattle and the area certified for eco-friendly agricultural products also saw significant growth.

In particular, exports of agricultural and marine specialty products showed a sharp increase from 40.3 million USD in 2016 to 60.68 million USD in 2019.

In the population welfare sector, the number of returning farmers and rural migrants increased from 491 households and 772 people in 2016 to 939 households and 1,475 people in 2019, demonstrating the effectiveness of population policies.

Additionally, participation in jobs for the elderly and disabled, as well as the number of public daycare centers, have shown gradual increases.

In tourism, despite a temporary slowdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, positive signs were seen with the number of tourists surpassing 4.59 million in 2019.

In the local economy sector, the number of registered manufacturing companies reached 196 in 2019, with an employment rate of 75.6%, indicating continuous growth.

Amid these changes, Gohung County also worked hard to solidify the foundation for county development.

The amount of national and provincial subsidies secured in 2019 was 807.8 billion won, an increase of 180.2 billion won compared to 2018. To establish a policy institutional foundation, seven comprehensive plans were developed: ▲Comprehensive Plan for the Era of 30 Million Won Resident Income ▲Comprehensive Plan for the Food Industry ▲2030 Marine and Fisheries Development Comprehensive Plan ▲Cultural Arts Promotion Comprehensive Plan ▲Tourism Promotion Comprehensive Plan ▲Five-Year Population Policy Plan ▲Comprehensive Welfare Policy Plan.

To focus on high-income agriculture, forestry, and livestock industries, efforts were made to establish a high value-added agricultural product base and support production infrastructure for the livestock industry, while concentrating on increasing fisheries income through improvements in aquaculture and diversifying domestic and international sales channels for agricultural and marine specialty products.

Furthermore, to foster manufacturing and future growth industries, one-stop services were provided to small and medium enterprises, construction of a drone-specialized knowledge industry center was initiated, and attention was paid to modernizing traditional markets.

For tourism infrastructure and diversification of tourism content, efforts were made to develop island tourism resources and expand tourism convenience facilities, while focusing on enhancing and diversifying festivals such as the Yuja (citron) and pomegranate festivals.

To activate tourism marketing and food tourism, fam tours for attracting tourists, development of tourism products, and commercialization of representative food items were pursued.

To establish a welfare service system encompassing all social classes, efforts were made to strengthen welfare for the elderly by providing ample jobs and ensuring healthy old age.

Job creation and welfare infrastructure for the disabled were expanded, social participation of women was promoted, and improvements were made to child and youth welfare facilities, focusing on welfare for the disabled, women, and youth.

For convenient and vibrant living conditions, efforts were made to revitalize the original downtown area and create lively rural fishing villages, with no neglect in improving facilities causing inconvenience to residents.

Efforts were made to achieve 3,000 households returning or relocating to Gohung, operating the nation’s first direct-run Happy School for Returning Farmers and Migrants, including one-stop services for returning farmers, fishers, and migrants.

To create a Gohung where young people return, support for stable settlement and strengthening of child-rearing and education systems for youth were implemented, laying the foundation for a happy Gohung where people come back.

Finally, to realize a county administration praised by residents, focus was placed on communication administration and citizen integration, with great efforts made to establish kindness and innovation among public officials.

Regarding the direction of county administration for the remaining two years of the 7th term, Governor Song stated plans to ▲focus on fostering agriculture, forestry, and livestock industries that increase residents’ real income ▲implement tourism policies that contribute to increasing residents’ income ▲provide more detailed and warm customized welfare services ▲realize livable residential conditions and prepare countermeasures for population decline ▲accelerate expansion of convenient transportation networks, improvement of road environments, and achieve zero population decline rate.

Governor Song Gwigeun said, “The past two years have been precious years above all, spent together with the residents, despite some regrets,” and added, “Together with all public officials, I will make sure to turn the next two years into fruitful results of residents’ happiness and regional development.”

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