Gyeonggi Province Vows to Reshape the Border-Area Economic Map... Launches Selection of Candidate Sites for the Peace Economic Special Zone

Gyeonggi Province Launches Open Call for Candidate Sites
for the Peace Economic Special Zone in Eight Cities and Counties
Candidate Site Applications Accepted from Cities and Counties Starting on the 11th
Four Candidate Sites to Be Selected in March

Gyeonggi Province has begun full-fledged efforts to establish a “Peace Economic Special Zone” that will serve as a new growth engine for inter-Korean border areas.

Gyeonggi Provincial Office. Provided by Gyeonggi Province

On February 10, Gyeonggi Province announced that from February 11 to March 10 it will conduct an open call to select candidate sites for the Peace Economic Special Zone, targeting eight border-area cities and counties within the province: Goyang, Paju, Gimpo, Yangju, Pocheon, Dongducheon, Gapyeong, and Yeoncheon. This is a preemptive move in response to the central government’s (Ministry of Unification) plan to designate approximately four Peace Economic Special Zones.

The Peace Economic Special Zone is a national strategic project that combines the values of peace and security with industrial and economic functions, focusing on inter-Korean border regions. Once designated as a Peace Economic Special Zone, areas can develop industrial complexes or tourism-specialized districts that receive benefits such as local tax reductions, relief from various charges, and financial support.

On December 26 last year, the Ministry of Unification announced the basic plan for the Peace Economic Special Zone, stating that it would designate a total of approximately four Peace Economic Special Zones by implementing pilot projects by the end of 2026 and making additional designations by the end of 2027.

In line with this basic plan, Gyeonggi Province intends to carry out the selection of candidate sites as a preliminary preparation step at the provincial level.

The selection process will proceed by first receiving candidate sites through an open call to cities and counties, then narrowing them down to four candidate locations through evaluations by a Candidate Site Selection Committee. The submitted proposals will undergo a two-stage review: an initial written and preliminary review, followed by a second-stage presentation and comprehensive evaluation that includes presentations and Q&A sessions with the cities and counties. The results of the candidate site selection will be finalized at the end of March.

Gyeonggi Province plans to secure objectivity and expertise in the evaluation process by adopting the assessment framework from the Ministry of Unification’s basic plan. The Candidate Site Selection Committee will be composed mainly of private-sector experts, and the reviews and evaluations will be conducted under the foremost principles of fairness and equity among the cities and counties.

However, the province stressed that this open call is not the final stage of designating the special zones, but rather a stage for selecting candidate sites on which future development plans will be based.

Jeoncheol, head of the Gyeonggi Province Peace Foundation Division, said, “The selection of candidate sites this time is the first official procedure for establishing the Peace Economic Special Zone and a process to fairly review the diverse ideas and plans of cities and counties within the province,” adding, “Instead of pre-determining specific areas, we will conduct an objective evaluation focused on feasibility and development potential.”

Based on the results of the candidate site selection, Gyeonggi Province will launch a research project titled “Study on Establishing the Gyeonggi Province Peace Economic Special Zone Development Plan,” and, following consultations with the Ministry of Unification, will gradually push forward the procedures for designating a pilot district in 2026. However, to ensure fairness, the candidate site selection process and evaluation details will be kept non-public, and the final designation of the special zones will be confirmed through deliberation and resolution by the Ministry of Unification.

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