Yeosu Mayor Kwon Oh-bong Diagnoses Current Population Status and Presents Policy Vision

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Heo Seon-sik] Kwon Oh-bong, Mayor of Yeosu City, Jeollanam-do, revealed the current population status and the vision for population policy direction that Yeosu City is facing through a response announcement to the population decline below 280,000 on the morning of the 14th at the city hall video room.

According to Yeosu City, the population, which was 330,000 at the time of the March 1998 merger of the three Yeosu districts, has decreased to the 280,000 range since 2016, and last month it fell below 280,000 to 279,844.

This is a global trend of low birthrate and aging, and since the second half of 2017, Yeosu City has experienced a reversal phenomenon where the number of deaths exceeds the number of births, resulting in a continuous natural population decline.

On this day, Mayor Kwon expressed his determination to create a more abundant and happy residential environment for citizens by promoting five strategies to respond to the low birthrate and aging society: ‘improvement of residential environment,’ ‘expansion of citizen living infrastructure,’ ‘creation of quality jobs,’ ‘promotion of virtuous cycle youth policies,’ and ‘innovation of childcare environment.’

First, in the field of residential environment improvement such as housing, urban regeneration, roads, and transportation, the city plans to complete the development of eco-friendly, smart residential sites for about 12,000 households in Soje, Juklim, and Manheung districts by 2024. To improve residential conditions in the old downtown area, the city is accelerating the Happy Housing Project, Saetteul Village, and Urban Regeneration New Deal projects, and is actively providing administrative support to improve the environment of old industrial complex workers’ dormitories.

By next year, the city plans to complete the outer ring road of the city by opening the bridge between Ungcheon and Soho, the tunnel between Soho and Juklim following the Mandeok intersection in front of the Expo by 2023, and to induce the inflow of industrial complex workers to the Manheung area through the bypass road from Mandeok-dong to Marae Tunnel and the expansion of the four-lane road between Manheung and Ocheon.

The city will also strive to create a pleasant and healthy residential environment by expanding urban parks such as fine dust blocking forests and Namsan Park, and increasing forest recreation spaces.

Efforts will be made to expand citizen living infrastructure in education, medical care, and culture and arts. The Jeonnam Viewer Media Center will be built by 2024, regional specialized departments will be fostered at Jeonnam National University Yeosu Campus, and the scholarship for outstanding students entering local high schools has been increased from 1.5 million won to 5 million won.

With the opening of the Youth Marine Education Center in July and the completion of the National Yeosu Marine Meteorological Science Museum in 2023, expectations are rising that various marine education and experience opportunities for youth will be provided.

To improve public medical welfare, the Jeonnam Regional Rehabilitation Hospital will begin construction this year, and with the establishment of the City Museum, Seonso Theme Garden, and City Art Museum, a citizen-centered cultural space will be created along with Yeulmaru and Jangdo.

At the same time, while maintaining the Yeoseo government office, the city plans to integrate seven dispersed government offices into one to provide citizens with convenient civil service processing and high-quality administrative services, thereby enhancing the city's competitiveness and urban value.

The city has also rolled up its sleeves to create quality jobs through investment attraction and fostering advanced industries.

By promptly developing the Yulchon 2 Industrial Complex and new investment sites, the shortage of industrial land within the national industrial complex will be resolved, and through the industrial complex renovation project investing over 1 trillion won by 2023, the city will transform into a low-carbon eco-friendly industrial complex and sustainable industrial ecosystem.

The city explained that it will continuously expand participation of companies in the hydrogen industry and other new material future industries, as well as the Yeosu Industrial Complex companies’ local talent recruitment citizen point system to create jobs, and will also expand tourism industry jobs linked to the Gyeongdo Marine Tourism Complex, post-expo utilization of the exhibition hall, and the construction of an exhibition convention center.

A virtuous cycle youth policy supporting employment and settlement will be promoted. A youth community center will be built on the former Munsu government office site to serve as a comprehensive platform for youth employment, start-up, and cultural activities, and support for youth marriage encouragement and newlywed housing will help establish a foundation for employment and settlement.

The childcare environment will be innovated to make it easier to have and raise children. Childbirth incentives will be expanded to 3 million won for the first child and 5 million won for the second and subsequent children, and the city will strengthen care functions by operating the Comprehensive Childcare Support Center, Ainarae Happiness Center, and expanding shared childcare spaces. In addition, investments for future generations will be expanded by building the Juklim Children’s Library and adding Ainarae playgrounds.

Mayor Kwon said, “To stabilize housing prices, which is one of the main causes of population outflow, we will increase housing supply and exert maximum administrative power to prevent speculative forces from taking root. We will do our best to create a more abundant and happy residential environment for citizens, and pursue population policies from a mid- to long-term perspective through continuous efforts aiming for a step forward, such as hosting COP28 in 2023 and the 2026 Yeosu World Islands Expo.”

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