Naju-si Holds 'Safety City Subcommittee' Meeting

[Naju=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yukbong] Naju City, Jeollanam-do (Mayor Kang In-gyu) announced on the 11th that it recently held a meeting of the 'Safe City Subcommittee,' consisting of seven divisions with participation from both the public and private sectors, at the city hall's large conference room.

The meeting proceeded with a special lecture by Cho Junpil, Director of the Korea Center for International Safe City Certification, a progress report on the international safe city certification project, and a Q&A session.

An international safe city refers to a city where community members continuously and actively strive to reduce damage caused by accidents and disasters and create a safe urban environment.

The International Safe City Certification Center (ISCCC, Sweden) selects and certifies cities that meet seven criteria. So far, 405 cities in 32 countries worldwide and 21 cities domestically have received international safe city certification.

Director Cho Junpil explained the meaning of international safe city certification, key projects, the importance of project implementation, and the role of the Safe City Subcommittee through his special lecture.

Established in October last year, the Safe City Subcommittee consists of seven divisions: 'Traffic Safety,' 'Women and Family,' 'Elderly and Disabled,' 'Crime and Violence Prevention,' 'Disaster Safety,' 'Suicide and Health Promotion,' and 'Climate and Environmental Response.'

A total of 73 working-level members from 42 organizations and social groups, including the city government, police station, fire station, Road Traffic Authority, Education Support Office, Korean Senior Citizens Association, Dongshin University, and Multicultural Family Support Center, are actively participating.

The committee serves as a public-private cooperative body for the sustainable creation of a safe city and project implementation, monitoring Naju City's safety promotion projects, and providing advice based on citizen feedback.

To establish a certification foundation, the city enacted the 'Naju City Safe City Ordinance' in 2017 and operates the Safe City Council and Safe City Working Committee.

After completing the 'Naju City Safe City Basic Survey Research' in 2019, the city has been promoting 57 safety enhancement projects identified by 20 organizations and departments since last year.

Additionally, in January, the city submitted a letter of intent and a project plan to the Korea Network for International Safe Cities to register as a city preparing for international safe city certification.

In February, the city signed a memorandum of understanding with the Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation of Ajou University, designated as the Korea Support Center for International Safe Cities, to strengthen cooperation in administrative and financial support, consultation, pilot project operation and development, and support for safe city-related network activities for certification.

Mayor Kang In-gyu stated, “International safe city certification does not mean safety is perfect but certifies the process where all community members, including the Safe City Subcommittee, strive to create a safe city. We will do our best to achieve certification by June next year through policy implementation that meets the seven international safe city certification criteria and public-private cooperation.”

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