Government's Disaster Safety Budget for This Year 21 Trillion Won... Full Effort on Infectious Disease and Wind and Water Disaster Prevention

Ministry of the Interior and Safety Reports to National Assembly... Jeon Hae-cheol: "With COVID Disaster Becoming Permanent, Local Governments' Role Grows"
Pursuing 'Autonomy and Decentralization 2.0' Centered on Residents and Local Councils

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[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The government has set this year's disaster safety budget at 21 trillion won, an increase of about 18% from last year, and plans to deploy resources to prevent infectious diseases and wind and flood damage while mobilizing the full capabilities of central and local governments to respond to COVID-19.

On the 17th, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety reported this at the plenary meeting of the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee. This year's total disaster safety budget across all ministries is 20.6 trillion won, up 17.9% from 17.5 trillion won last year. The increased budget will be used to ensure public safety from infectious diseases, wind and flood damage, and industrial accidents.

Before the report, Minister Jeon Hae-cheol said in his opening remarks, "The COVID-19 disaster has become a constant issue, and the role of local governments in responding to regional economic crises is growing, causing rapid changes in the administrative environment," adding, "We will do our best to ensure that the reported policies achieve results quickly."

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety plans to focus on 15 policy tasks in three areas: early overcoming of COVID-19 and securing public safety, Autonomy and Decentralization 2.0 and revitalizing regional vitality, and government innovation leading digital transformation, aiming for "a country where all citizens are safe and prosper equally."

First, to respond to COVID-19, local governments will be actively supported. To enable rapid and safe vaccination, dedicated organizations and vaccination facility operations will be supported for each local government, and citizens will be provided with a "National Secretary Vaccination Guidance Service" that informs them of vaccination dates, locations, and precautions via internet portals and apps.

Special funding will be provided to sustain active testing activities, and support will be given to quickly recruit 1,066 personnel for infectious disease response standards. To facilitate smooth self-quarantine, the safety protection app for self-quarantined individuals will be improved, and digital technologies such as geographic information system (GIS) situation management and AI call centers will be actively utilized.

Regarding wind and flood damage response, the ministry plans to review the progress of each department, including strengthening dam and river safety, preventing landslide collapses, and urban flood prevention, and revise related laws and systems. The budget for disaster prevention projects for steep slopes and hazardous reservoirs increased by 19%, from 497 billion won last year to 591.5 billion won this year.

The system for rapid disaster response and practical recovery support will also be strengthened. By March, a unified disaster safety communication network will be established, and an "Emergency Report App" integrating "112 emergency calls" and "119 calls" will enable effective disaster situation response. Additionally, the period required to declare special disaster areas will be reduced from three weeks to one week to ensure prompt support.

The government will promote "Autonomy and Decentralization 2.0," centered on residents and local councils. The "Resident Ordinance Proposal Act" will be enacted to allow residents to directly request the enactment, revision, or abolition of ordinances to local councils, and requirements for recall and referendums will be eased. Online requests and electronic voting will be introduced to lower barriers to resident participation. Furthermore, the second Local Government Transfer Act will be enacted to transfer national affairs to local governments, and regarding special cities, research on designation criteria, procedures, and scope of special provisions will be conducted by the first half of the year to prepare enforcement ordinances.

The autonomy organization rights of local governments will also be expanded. The current local government structure, which separates heads of local governments and local councils, will be improved to allow autonomous selection of a parliamentary-centered structure similar to a cabinet system or the method of appointing heads. Regarding the autonomous police system, which will be fully implemented in July, support will be provided for ordinance enactment and revision as well as pilot operation of autonomous police committees.

There is also a goal to activate the regional economy by executing 60% of local finances in the first half of the year. Of the 15 trillion won in regional love gift certificates supported by national funds this year, 4.5 trillion won worth will be issued in the first quarter, and 44,000 local jobs for vulnerable groups will be supported.

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