Ministry of the Interior and Safety Selects 14 Local Governments for Foreigners and North Korean Defectors' Livelihood Improvement Projects

Announcement of Basic Living Infrastructure Improvement Project Contest Results... Total National Funding of 2.8 Billion Won Provided

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] A media center has been built in the multicultural special zone village of Ansan-si, Gyeonggi Province, serving as a communication and exchange space between local residents and foreign residents, and in Gimhae-si, Gyeongnam Province, a foreign resident harmony community center has been established to be used as a space for information exchange and communication.

On the 7th, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced that it had selected 14 local governments for the ‘2022 Residential Environment Improvement Project for Foreign Residents and North Korean Defectors.’ The public contest for the ‘Basic Living Infrastructure Development Project in Residential Areas for Foreign Residents, etc.’ was conducted nationwide in January, and after on-site inspections and evaluations by the project selection committee, a total of 14 local governments were finally selected.

The 14 selected local governments are divided into two categories: seven for expanding safety, cultural, and convenience facilities to improve the residential environment, and seven for expanding community spaces to activate communication and exchange between local residents. The local governments selected for the expansion of safety, cultural, and convenience facilities are Guro-gu in Seoul, Gwangsan-gu in Gwangju, Ansan-si in Gyeonggi, Nonsan-si in Chungnam, Gunsan-si in Jeonbuk, Haenam-gun in Jeonnam, and Changwon-si in Gyeongnam. For the activation of communication and exchange between local residents, Sasang-gu in Busan, Daejeon Metropolitan City, Siheung-si in Gyeonggi, Imsil-gun in Jeonbuk, Uiseong-gun in Gyeongbuk, Goryeong-gun in Gyeongbuk, and Gimhae-si in Gyeongnam were selected.

Guro-gu in Seoul and Gunsan-si in Jeonbuk, selected for the expansion of safety, cultural, and convenience facilities, will create safe streets in foreign resident areas to prevent incidents and accidents and improve safety network infrastructure. Gwangsan-gu in Gwangju plans to create a world culture platform plaza at Pyeongdong Station Square, where many foreign workers pass through, to promote diverse cultures, and Ansan-si in Gyeonggi will establish a media center to provide a communication and exchange space between domestic and foreign residents.

Nonsan-si in Chungnam will improve sidewalks and install safety and convenience facilities in areas densely populated by foreigners to change the local image. Haenam-gun in Jeonnam plans to install walking trails, fitness facilities, and security cameras around the site of a dormitory for rural foreign workers using a closed school, creating a space that local residents and foreign workers can use together. Changwon-si in Gyeongnam will renovate an old resting area in a region with many foreign workers by installing a children's playground, resident convenience spaces, and a book cafe, transforming it into a space for information sharing and communication among foreign residents.

Sasang-gu in Busan, selected for activating communication and exchange between local residents, will renovate the multicultural sharing center located in the multicultural specialized street to provide various contents to foreign residents. Daejeon Metropolitan City will convert a closed underground passage into a small performance hall and meeting rooms, creating a communication space that foreign residents, North Korean defectors, and citizens can all use. Siheung-si in Gyeonggi will expand service spaces to support foreign residents’ children in adapting to school life and stable growth, addressing educational blind spots, and Imsil-gun in Jeonbuk will create communication and exchange spaces for migrant women and indoor play facilities for infants and toddlers to support communication with local residents.

Choi Hoon, Director of the Local Autonomy and Decentralization Office, said, “We will expand residential environment improvement projects so that foreign residents and North Korean defectors can settle early in local communities,” and added, “We will actively support various assistance projects so that they can live together with local residents.”

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