Jeonnam Province Selects 4 Districts for 'Rural New Vitality Plus Contest'

Hwasun, Hampyeong, Wando, and Boseong Selected... Securing 28 Billion KRW in Project Funding

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] Jeonnam Province announced on the 6th that four counties?Hwasun, Hampyeong, Wando, and Boseong?were finally selected among 20 cities and counties nationwide in the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs' '2021 Rural New Vitality Plus Contest Project.'

The Rural New Vitality Plus Project is a program that utilizes various resources and private self-sustaining organizations built through regional development projects and rural convergence industries to establish a self-reliant regional development foundation capable of industrial advancement, fostering social economy organizations, and creating jobs.

It also aims to systematically support the creation of rural innovation by fostering specialized industries using facilities supported by rural development projects and programs, revitalizing communities, and cultivating capabilities.

Among the four selected counties, Hwasun, Hampyeong, and Wando will receive support for four years starting next year, and Boseong, as a preliminary district, will receive 7 billion KRW annually for four years starting in 2022, totaling 28 billion KRW in project funds.

The project is expected to contribute to job creation and the establishment of a foundation for regional economic revitalization by inducing the commercialization of region-specific resources through R&D projects for building regional industrial infrastructure, upgrading facilities and equipment, and fostering social economy organizations.

The province has been conducting expert pre-consultations for cities and counties wishing to participate in the contest to enhance the completeness of project plans.

In the province's own evaluation, the project plans were analyzed for strengths and weaknesses and focused on improvements, with revisions and supplements made to the plans to thoroughly prepare for the central evaluation.

As a result, central evaluation committee members commented, "The process and content of the project plan formulation were quite substantial, and the strong willingness of young local activists participating in the promotion team gave us a bright outlook for the project."

Jeong Hayong, Director of Agricultural Policy at Jeonnam Province, said, "The pre-consultations by rural experts, the province's own evaluation, and consulting assessments were key to this contest result. Moving forward, we will improve residents' quality of life and promote the influx of youth into rural areas to enhance the sustainability of rural communities facing extinction risks."

Meanwhile, since 2018, 11 cities and counties in the province have been selected and are carrying out projects, and with the selection of these four counties, projects will be conducted in 15 cities and counties.

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