Gwangju Mayor Kang Gijeong Emphasizes 'Diversification and Institutionalization of Direct Communication'

Encouragement for Public Officials at the First Regular Assembly in the Second Year of Inauguration

Gwangju Mayor Kang Gi-jung emphasized the "diversification and institutionalization of direct communication" at the first regular briefing of his third year in office.

According to Gwangju City on the 4th, Mayor Kang held a regular briefing in the morning under the theme "Reflections on 8,760 hours and the path forward for 26,280 hours."

Mayor Kang first spoke about the valuable achievements of the past year, including the enactment of the Special Act on Military Airports, the implementation of Gwangju-style integrated care, the opening of the summit of Mudeungsan Mountain, and the attraction of a 1 million-pyeong national future car industrial complex, encouraging public officials who worked hard to promote city administration.

Mayor Kang said, "Thank you for working hard over the past year. Above all, the greatest achievement is the trust and closeness built between you and me," adding, "The time we were able to have deep conversations was the most valuable, and this is a great strength for me to lead the city administration going forward."

He then emphasized the "diversification and institutionalization of direct communication." To maintain policy balance, he plans to meet citizens "directly" and institutionalize communication channels to hear "various voices."

Mayor Kang stated, "Communication by the mayor is completed when meetings, listening, and empathy are realized through policies accompanied by budgets," and added, "For that, principles and responsibilities must follow, and city administration decisions must consider not only the citizens who voice their opinions in front of us but also many more citizens who are not visible."

He also said, "What I am most cautious about is failing to make decisions that align with the interests of Gwangju and the majority of its citizens," emphasizing, "Institutionalizing communication is essential to complement individual limitations. I will expand opportunities for communication so that we can meet more people regularly on various issues."

Furthermore, he added, "Through the institutionalization of diverse direct communication, I will constantly reflect on whether this path is the right one, whether the pace is too slow or too fast, and whether it is for the happiness of citizens, and set the direction accordingly."

To this end, Mayor Kang is conducting daily situation meetings, Tuesday luncheons, Friday strategy meetings, and discussions with project departments as forums for free discussion with public officials.

For direct communication with citizens, the city has established the online survey and citizen policy proposal platform, Citizen Plaza Gwangju ON, and is enhancing policy execution through listening to voices on-site via Monday dialogues and policy picnics. He has also met directly with citizens who raised collective complaints to resolve conflicts through honest dialogue.

Over the past year, about 960 citizens participated in more than 30 sessions of "Monday Dialogue," and the administration has reflected citizens' voices by establishing the Education Policy Office, Companion Animal Welfare Team, and Foreign Resident Support Division.

The "Policy Picnic," which visited 21 sites, resulted in achievements such as strengthening the self-reliance system for youth preparing for independence, a city-wide campaign to reduce the three major fatal accidents, and the establishment of a public late-night children's hospital.

Additionally, to facilitate communication in various fields, new initiatives such as the Labor-Management-Civil-Government Council, which includes representatives of special employment and platform workers, and the Welfare Roundtable have been launched. The city is also strengthening the functions and substance of various committees in Gwangju, including the Public-Private Cooperation Committee, the Rights Committee, and the Regional Problem-Solving Platform, which serve as citizen communication channels.

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