Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority Targets $600 Million in Foreign Direct Investment... Focus on Bio and Healthcare Sectors

A view of the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority (G-Tower) in Songdo International City [Photo provided by Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] The Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority has set this year's foreign direct investment (FDI) target at 600 million dollars and will actively attract investment focusing on core strategic industries.

The Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority announced on the 9th that it has prepared a comprehensive investment attraction plan for this year, centered on completing the value chain of the bio cluster, which accounted for 48.6% of last year's foreign investment attraction performance, along with attracting investment in core strategic industries such as bio-healthcare, smart manufacturing, aviation-complex logistics, and knowledge-tourism services.

First, it set a goal to attract 600 million dollars (approximately 717.7 billion KRW) in foreign direct investment (FDI) this year.

Despite difficult conditions such as the global and domestic economic slowdown due to the spread of new variant viruses, the possibility of ongoing disputes between the U.S. and China over economic hegemony, and only 7.2% of the remaining land excluding Songdo International City District 11, the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority is setting the target at the previous year's level and moving forward with investment attraction.

It plans to activate investment attraction in service industries to complete the existing value chain, including attracting additional foreign universities, logistics-distribution, tourism-leisure, medical complex, and financial infrastructure, and to promote the establishment of future new industry hubs such as advanced industries like bio and smart manufacturing, hydrogen industry, connected car certification evaluation center, and robot demonstration center.

Additionally, it will establish a mid- to long-term investment attraction strategy and strengthen investment attraction activities (IR), expanding the investment attraction foundation centered on innovative growth as the 'three major investment attraction promotion strategies,' and plans to carry out 13 tasks.

The main core tasks include ▲ expanding the Songdo bio cluster ▲ attracting excellent overseas educational institutions ▲ establishing a bio-process workforce training center ▲ revitalizing investment attraction in advanced industries such as smart manufacturing ▲ creating logistics-distribution clusters ▲ activating tourism, leisure, and cultural business attraction ▲ establishing future-type medical complex ▲ creating global financial infrastructure ▲ and developing an international business city.

The Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority plans to focus on completing the bio cluster value chain based on last year's contract for vaccine research and development and production facilities with SK Bioscience and the attraction of the K-Bio Lab Hub.

In this regard, when the 'Basic Plan for the Development of the Incheon Free Economic Zone' is finalized at the Economic Free Zone Committee hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on the 14th, it plans to prepare investment attraction promotion strategies and core tasks by the four core strategic industries of the Incheon Free Economic Zone, including setting FDI targets through 2030 in connection with this.

In the Incheon Free Economic Zone, including Songdo, Cheongna, and Yeongjong International Cities, a total of 738.55 million dollars (approximately 883.5 billion KRW) in FDI was attracted last year based on reported amounts, exceeding the annual target by 23%.

Lee Won-jae, head of the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority, said, "This year, we will do our best to promote investment attraction centered on core strategic industries so that the Incheon Free Economic Zone can play a leading role in the leap of the Korean economy."

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