Changwon Mayor Hong Nampyo and Local National Assembly Members United to Secure National Budget for Next Year

Held Breakfast Meeting with Local National Assembly Members to Discuss Measures for Securing National Funding

From the front row, left to right: National Assembly members Choi Hyung-doo and Kang Ki-yoon, Changwon Special Mayor Hong Nam-pyo, and National Assembly members Kim Young-sun, Lee Dal-gon, and Yoon Han-hong.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Song Jong-gu] Hong Nampyo, Mayor of Changwon Special City in Gyeongnam, and local members of the National Assembly have united to secure national funding for next year.

Mayor Hong held a breakfast meeting on the 27th at the National Assembly, inviting local lawmakers to discuss major city administration issues and to make every effort to secure the 2023 national budget.

Since July, starting with the ‘Joint Meeting for Securing National Funding,’ Mayor Hong has strengthened communication with the National Assembly by meeting with Park Dae-chul, Chairman of the Planning and Finance Committee; Sung Il-jong, Policy Committee Chair of the People Power Party; Kim Jeong-jae, Secretary of the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee; as well as Lee Joo-hwan, Lee In-seon, Kim Jeong-jae, and Jang Dong-hyuk from the Special Budget and Accounts Committee. At this meeting, they put their heads together with local lawmakers to continue discussions on total response efforts to secure national funding ahead of the National Assembly’s review of the government budget proposal and to address regional issues.

The major projects for which Changwon City is seeking national funding include ▲ AI and Big Data-based advanced medical and bio device manufacturing ▲ Construction of next-generation advanced composite beam irradiation facilities ▲ Support project for smooth landing of special industrial crisis response areas ▲ Construction of the 3rd columbarium at Changwon Municipal Sangbok Park ▲ Establishment of a future Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) complex research center ▲ Construction of Changwon BRT ▲ Improvement of the Changwon Seomasan IC access road ▲ Urban regeneration New Deal project for Hapjeong 1 district ▲ Installation of sewage pipelines in Daesan-dong town ▲ Support for advanced equipment and robot digital manufacturing innovation ▲ Construction of the Gyeongnam Nuclear Industry Comprehensive Support Center ▲ Basic plan establishment for modernization of the 300-year-old Masan Fish Market ▲ Clean seawater supply system construction project, totaling 13 projects with a total project cost of 654.8 billion KRW (national funding 534.3 billion KRW), of which 22.2 billion KRW is required for 2023.

Among the major projects, ‘AI and Big Data-based advanced medical and bio device manufacturing’ aims to secure future new growth engines by applying AI and Big Data technology to the manufacturing of advanced medical and bio devices that require precision processing.

Also, the ‘Construction of next-generation advanced composite beam irradiation facilities’ is the first domestic project to build various accelerators customized for industry, and the city plans to start a feasibility study next year for the next-generation advanced composite beam irradiation facilities necessary for fostering advanced science and technology and future industries.

In particular, Mayor Hong explained the new concept of the ‘National Industrial Complex 2.0,’ a defense and nuclear power specialized industrial complex, emphasizing, “The defense and nuclear power industries, which are recently expanding into the global market from Changwon, must be intensively fostered at the national level.”

He also explained the necessity of designating Changwon for the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s ▲ Urban Air Mobility Grand Challenge (K-UAM GC) Phase 2 demonstration project ▲ and the relocation of R&D-centered public institutions to Changwon, requesting support at the National Assembly level.

Mayor Hong said, “Securing the national budget is essential for urgent projects aimed at restoring the people’s economy and fostering future new industries. However, next year, due to the government’s sound fiscal policy, securing national funding will be even more difficult, so the interest and support of lawmakers are more important than ever. The city will also respond promptly to the National Assembly’s review of the government budget proposal and concentrate all administrative power to secure high-quality national funding until the moment next year’s budget is finalized, while continuing efforts to secure Changwon’s future new growth engines.”

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