Chungnam Province, Fostering Local Key Industries to Address Population Decline

Chungnam Province is responding to population decline by fostering local anchor industries.

On the 3rd, Chungnam Province announced that three projects were selected for the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ ‘City/County/District Anchor Industry Development Project’ as the first national project of the year.

According to the selection results, Chungnam Province will receive 2.76 billion KRW in national funding to promote related projects.

The selected projects are ▲ Nonsan City and Seocheon County’s ‘Support Project for High Value-Added Food Industry and Marketing Capability Enhancement’ ▲ Boryeong City’s ‘Regional Brand Diversification Project Utilizing Excellent Marine Resources’ ▲ Buyeo County’s ‘Support Project for Production Advancement through Establishment of Anchor Resource Smart Farm Infrastructure’.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups promotes this project with the goal of revitalizing the economy in non-metropolitan population decline areas by discovering business models in local anchor fields led by the region’s small and medium enterprises and supporting commercialization to respond to regional extinction.

Accordingly, Nonsan City and Seocheon County plan to establish a linked network among local governments centered on the processed food industry using local agricultural resources, and support marketing, product upgrading, prototype production, certification, and testing analysis.

Chungnam Province expects this to create 35 jobs, increase corporate sales by 1.5 billion KRW, and boost exports by 150 million KRW.

Boryeong City plans to support business advancement for fostering excellent brands by linking with SME innovation contest projects, providing business growth consulting, and operating education and training programs. The expected effects of project implementation include 35 jobs, a 2.5 billion KRW increase in corporate sales, and commercialization exports from eight supported companies.

Buyeo County plans to engage in smart farm awareness improvement, startup activation support, and promising company commercialization support in connection with SME innovation contest projects. The anticipated economic ripple effects include 50 jobs, a 2 billion KRW increase in corporate sales, and a 5% increase in export growth rate.

A Chungnam Province official said, “We will use the fostering of local anchor industries as a stepping stone to create a turning point for the agricultural and fishery food industry in population-declining areas to overcome the demand stagnation period,” adding, “Chungnam Province will do its best to lay the foundation to overcome the regional extinction crisis through the growth of local SMEs.”

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