Seoul Gangseo-gu Secures 7.5 Billion Won for Next Year's Resident Participatory Budget... Largest Scale Among Seoul Autonomous Districts Since 2012

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] “Every year, the foul smell caused by ginkgo fruits has been inconvenient, so I proposed installing nets on ginkgo trees. Next year, when I see the nets installed on the ginkgo trees, I will feel even prouder knowing that the project I proposed was selected through voting and actually implemented.”

This project, proposed by Choi Ik-dong (Yeomchang-dong), a resident of Gangseo-gu, Seoul, involves installing nets around the trunks of ginkgo trees to prevent the fruits from falling to the ground. This allows for quick and easy removal of the ginkgo fruits, helping to maintain clean streets and prevent foul odors in advance.

The Citizen Participation Budget System is a process where residents directly propose projects and decide on the entire selection process themselves.

Gangseo-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Noh Hyun-song) announced that it secured the largest-ever budget of 7.53 billion KRW for next year at the ‘2020 Seoul Citizen Participation Budget Festival’.

The 7.53 billion KRW secured this time is an outstanding amount among all autonomous districts since the ‘2012 Citizen Participation Budget System’ was implemented. This achievement was made possible by the passion of Gangseo-gu residents who worked hard to have 69 diverse projects selected.

The projects selected this year include 69 cases in three categories: ▲Metropolitan Proposal Type 33 cases (5.828 billion KRW) ▲District-level Planning Type 12 cases (1.55 billion KRW) ▲Neighborhood-level Planning Type 24 cases (150 million KRW).

Major metropolitan proposal projects include ▲installation of ginkgo tree nets ▲installation of central dividers to prevent jaywalking ▲maintenance of Bongjesan Mountain walking trails ▲establishment of facility guidance services using smartphone augmented reality (AR), among 33 projects.

The district-level planning projects, selected to solve local community issues through public-private cooperation, include ▲creating a foundation for a beautiful life as a women-friendly city ▲practicing health in daily life, finding paths on the street, among 12 projects.

Additionally, neighborhood-level planning projects selected by resident autonomy committees include ▲one-day classes to experience autonomy ▲masters of solo dining, among 24 projects.

At the Citizen Participation Excellent Implementation Project Competition held at this festival, the project proposed by Gangseo-gu residents, ‘Postpartum Depression Overcoming Project: Happy Mom, Happy Family,’ won the Excellence Award, earning the honor of winning for two consecutive years following the Encouragement Award in 2019.

District Mayor Noh Hyun-song said, “Thanks to the great interest and participation of residents, we were able to achieve the best results. Next year, we will do our best to ensure that the projects proposed and selected by residents are smoothly implemented.”

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