Cultural Heritage Administration's Budget for Next Year 1.2014 Trillion Won... 5.2% Increase

by Lee Jonggil

Published 05 Dec.2021 14:48(KST)

808.7 Billion KRW Invested to Strengthen Cultural Heritage Preservation Management System

Cultural Heritage Administration's Budget for Next Year 1.2014 Trillion Won... 5.2% Increase

The Cultural Heritage Administration announced on the 5th that next year’s budget has been set at 1.2014 trillion KRW, which is 5.2% more than this year. This is an increase of 28.3 billion KRW compared to the 1.1731 trillion KRW submitted to the National Assembly by the government last September. By sector, 20 billion KRW has been added for the repair and maintenance of cultural assets such as national treasures and treasures, 4.9 billion KRW for the promotion of cultural heritage repair technology, and 2.3 billion KRW for the registration and preservation management of World Heritage sites.

The Cultural Heritage Administration will invest 808.7 billion KRW, which is 34.2 billion KRW more than this year, to strengthen the cultural heritage preservation and management system. This includes 404 billion KRW for cultural asset repair and maintenance, 23.9 billion KRW for emergency archaeological site investigation support, 4.9 billion KRW for the establishment of a comprehensive cultural heritage repair information system, 14.5 billion KRW for building a 3D original form record database of cultural assets, and 5 billion KRW for constructing a repair history database. Newly launched projects such as basic research on historical and cultural zones and the discovery and fostering of future intangible heritage will each use 3 billion KRW and 1.1 billion KRW, respectively.

The budget for strengthening cultural heritage preservation and management capabilities and creating a foundation for industrial revitalization is 115 billion KRW, which is 3.7 billion KRW more than this year. Newly allocated funds include 2.4 billion KRW for supporting cultural heritage industry internships and 1 billion KRW for research on traditional material supply plans and support for production infrastructure. National research and development in the fields of cultural heritage repair, safety management, and digital twin will spend 10.6 billion KRW, which is 2.7 billion KRW more than this year.

936 billion KRW will be invested to strengthen World Heritage preservation. This includes 1.1 billion KRW for operating a promotional center at Incheon International Airport, 3.4 billion KRW for monthly installation of traditional media content at Incheon International Airport, 2 billion KRW for the preservation and management of the “Korea’s Tidal Flats,” and 3.7 billion KRW for Official Development Assistance (ODA). A Cultural Heritage Administration official stated, “Next year is expected to bring a major transformation due to the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the gradual normalization of daily life. We will realize new cultural heritage administration and government innovation achievements through innovation in the cultural heritage preservation and management system and policies that promote coexistence among cultural heritage, people, and regions.”