Gangwon Province Targets the Heart of the K-Defense Industry... All-Out Push with 160% Budget Increase

Expansion to 60 Partner Companies at the Defense Venture Center
Package Support for Technology Advancement and Military Networks
Partner Company Sales Soar 35% Year-on-Year
Tangible Outcomes, Including 4.6 Billion Won in Military Procurement

Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province (Governor Kim Jin-tae) is accelerating the restructuring of the regional industrial ecosystem by riding the wave of the K-defense industry market, which is outpacing the growth of the manufacturing sector. In line with the central government's goal of becoming one of the "world's top four defense exporters," the province is moving to provide comprehensive support for local companies seeking to enter the defense sector.

Exterior view of Gangwon Provincial Government Office. Provided by Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province.

Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province announced that it will significantly strengthen its support system centered on the "Gangwon Defense Venture Center," which serves as the core base for local companies entering the defense industry. In particular, the province plans to accelerate "performance-oriented" support by increasing the center's budget for this year by 160% compared to the previous year.

The Gangwon Defense Venture Center is currently recruiting new partner companies for 2026. Building on the 44 companies it had identified up to last year, the center plans to expand the total number of partner companies to more than 60 this year.

The "2026 New Partner Company Recruitment Notice," which closed on January 23, drew applications from 35 companies in total, reflecting strong interest on the ground.

Partner companies receive a package of core support essential for entering the defense sector, including matching with military commercialization projects, funding for product and technology development, and access to military networks through the use of defense industry specialists.

In addition, the center will promote full-cycle commercialization support, including the provision of defense technology information that is difficult to obtain, management consulting, and assistance for participation in defense exhibitions.

This support is already translating into tangible results.

The combined sales of 20 companies that signed agreements with the center last year increased by 35% (13.4 billion won) compared to before the agreements. They also achieved 4.6 billion won in supplies to institutions such as military units and 5.0 billion won in contracts for research and development projects from the Defense Acquisition Program Administration.

Furthermore, to continuously support local companies in winning national defense research and development projects and entering the military procurement market, the province is newly introducing the "Defense Technology Advancement Support Project."

Through a notice to be issued by Gangwon Technopark in February, the province will focus on nurturing promising companies in the field of national defense strategic technologies and will proactively lay the groundwork for attracting a Defense Industry Innovation Cluster from the Defense Acquisition Program Administration in the future.

This project will be implemented with a budget of 400 million won, and the province plans to expand the participation of promising local companies capable of transitioning into the defense sector in order to enhance the competitiveness of the regional defense industry.

Kim Manho, Director-General of Economic Affairs for the province, stated, "We are not just paying lip service to the 'defense industry.' We are creating a structure that generates real results by bundling budget expansion, technology advancement, and linkage with military networks into a single package," adding, "We will support more local companies so that they can establish a foothold in the defense market, and based on the accumulated achievements, we will complete a virtuous-cycle ecosystem that extends to attracting a Defense Industry Innovation Cluster."

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