Korea-ASEAN National Garden, See You Soon in Geoje, Gyeongnam!

Gyeongnam Province, Korea Forest Service, and Geoje City Sign Business Agreement to Foster Garden City Development

Gyeongsangnam-do signed a business agreement with the Korea Forest Service and Geoje City on the 15th to foster a garden city. (From left, Ha Byung-pil, Acting Governor of Gyeongnam Province; Choi Byung-am, Administrator of the Korea Forest Service; Byun Kwang-yong, Mayor of Geoje City)

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Seryeong] On the 15th, Gyeongsangnam-do signed a 'Business Agreement for the Development of Garden Cities,' marking the first step in creating the Korea-ASEAN National Garden.

The signing ceremony held at the Gyeongnam Provincial Government Office meeting room was attended by Ha Byungpil, Acting Governor of Gyeongsangnam-do, Choi Byungam, Administrator of the Korea Forest Service, and Byeon Gwangyong, Mayor of Geoje City.

The agreement was established to foster and support Gyeongsangnam-do and Geoje regions as garden cities through mutual cooperation in garden promotion, and to revitalize garden culture for nationwide expansion and development.

The business agreement for fostering garden cities includes key contents such as the creation and management of gardens including the Korea-ASEAN National Garden, training of professionals in the garden field, cooperation for the expansion and development of garden culture and industry, citizen participation and awareness enhancement for revitalizing garden culture, and fostering garden cities in Gyeongsangnam-do and Geoje regions.

Currently, South Korea has two national gardens: Suncheonman National Garden and Taehwagang National Garden, attracting 2.18 million and 920,000 visitors annually, respectively.

The Korea-ASEAN National Garden is planned to be created as a 200-hectare national forest in Dongbu-myeon, Geoje City, as part of the forest management cooperation measures adopted in the joint chairman's statement of the 2019 Korea-ASEAN Special Summit.

An official from the province predicted that the Korea-ASEAN National Garden, to be developed over eight years from 2022 to 2030, will see annual visitors exceeding 10 million once the Southern Inland Railway connects the metropolitan area and the Geoga Bridge, increasing inflow from the Busan area.

Choi Byungam, Administrator of the Korea Forest Service, said, “The Gyeongnam region has active local and residential garden creation and private garden registration,” adding, “By utilizing the region’s excellent garden resources and linking with the upcoming Korea-ASEAN National Garden, we can create a successful garden city model.”

National Assembly member Seo Iljun stated, “The Korea-ASEAN National Garden will be a great opportunity to build deeper trust between Korea and ASEAN,” and added, “I will do my best to ensure the project is successfully carried out until the end.”

Ha Byungpil, Acting Governor, said, “The Korea-ASEAN National Garden will revitalize the local tourism industry and be a groundbreaking opportunity for regional economic development,” and emphasized, “We will work closely with the Korea Forest Service and Geoje City to make the national garden a world-class tourist attraction.”

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