[2021 Economic Policy] 13.2 Trillion Won Investment in Green New Deal... Promotion of Emissions Trading 활성화 추진

'2021 Economic Policy Direction'

'2050 Carbon Neutrality 3+1 Strategy' Promotion through Establishment of a Presidential Committee
Allowing Participation of Third Parties such as Financial Institutions in the Emissions Trading Market

12.7 Trillion Won Investment in Digital New Deal... Pursuing 5G Tax Reform, 6G Technology Leadership, and Fostering Non-Face-to-Face Economy

Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, is conducting a joint briefing on the "Government 2050 Carbon Neutrality Promotion Strategy" on the morning of the 7th at the briefing room of the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] The government plans to invest a total of 13.2 trillion won next year for the Green New Deal, one of the two pillars of the Korean New Deal, and to support the implementation of the Green New Deal and 2050 carbon neutrality by promoting green finance and revitalizing the emissions trading market.

On the 17th, the government held an expanded economic ministers' meeting chaired by President Moon Jae-in at the Blue House and finalized and announced the '2021 Economic Policy Direction' containing these details.

◆ Transition to an 'Eco-friendly and Low-carbon' Economy through 'Green New Deal and Carbon Neutrality' = First, to fully promote the '2050 Carbon Neutrality 3+1 Strategy,' the government will establish a promotion system including a presidential committee. A carbon neutrality scenario will be developed in the first half of the year, and based on this, a promotion strategy for key policies (about 20) will be established and implemented in the second half.

To accelerate the low-carbon and eco-friendly transformation of spaces closely related to citizens' lives, the government will continue efforts such as remodeling 83,000 old public rental housing units and constructing 761 Green Smart Schools. It will also promote the creation of green convergence clusters in five leading fields?clean air, bio-materials, thermal energy from water, future waste resources, and resource circulation?linking technology development, production, and market channels, and designate 30 promising 'Green New Deal' companies in the second round to foster the green industry in earnest.

To revitalize green finance and the emissions trading market, the government will introduce the K-Green Classification System to clarify whether investments are green and allow participation of third parties such as financial institutions in the emissions trading market.

◆ Leading the Digital Innovation Economy Based on ICT Technology = For the Digital New Deal next year, a total of 12.7 trillion won will be invested. The government will also pursue 5G tax reform, 6G technology leadership, and fostering the non-face-to-face economy to support the success of the Digital New Deal.

To establish the basic infrastructure for activating the data economy, a data special committee will be newly established within the 4th Industrial Revolution Committee, and a public-private joint data governance system will be built to oversee national data policies. To protect the economic value of data and lay the legal foundation for fostering related industries and dispute resolution, the government will enact a Data Basic Act and strengthen data utilization by building industry-specific big data platforms, financial, medical, and public MyData platforms, and advancing big data analysis for commercial districts to support small business owners.

To accelerate the spread of 5G, the government will provide a preferential tax credit rate increase of 2 percentage points for acquisition and construction costs of 5G facilities and continue to apply this in the Seoul metropolitan area’s overconcentration control zones. From next year until 2025, R&D investment will continue in six key areas for securing 6G core technologies: ultra-performance, ultra-broadband, ultra-precision, ultra-spatial, ultra-intelligence, and ultra-reliability, along with support for securing standard patents.

Additionally, to promote the use of artificial intelligence (AI), individual legislative tasks will be pursued in the second half of next year according to the AI legal and institutional improvement roadmap, including amendments to the Copyright Act, and support will be provided for AI utilization vouchers for SMEs and startups. To lead the non-face-to-face economy, the government will build digital technology-based infrastructure focusing on life-related fields such as medical care and caregiving, including smart hospitals and care robots for the elderly and disabled. Starting in March next year, the government will begin raising a policy-type New Deal fund targeting 4 trillion won and aim to expand New Deal finance through policy financial support of '17.5 trillion won + α' for New Deal sectors.

Alongside this, to revitalize ventures and startups and foster new industries, the government will establish a 'K-Testbed' system led by public institutions to support product demonstration based on new technologies, and provide preferential treatment in innovative procurement and support for overseas expansion for excellent products. To globalize the venture ecosystem, support for overseas expansion of promising ventures and establishment of joint ventures between domestic and overseas companies using international organization trust funds will be provided. Furthermore, through amendments to the Venture Act, a Silicon Valley-style investment conditional loan system will be introduced, offering low-interest loans while acquiring warrants of venture companies.

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