[The Editors' Verdict] Mega City: Turf Wars Must Be Prevented from the Start

Kyung-ho Lee, Head of Social Affairs Division

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The ‘Busan-Ulsan-Gyeongnam Special Local Government (Bu-Ul-Gyeong Mega City)’, which aims to become one of the eight major economic zones in Northeast Asia, took its first step on the 19th. Unfortunately, signs of a turf war have appeared right from the start. In the Ulsan and Gyeongnam regions, there is a theory of neglect that Busan will immediately lead the Mega City, while in Busan, there is a theory that Busan is the center of the Mega City. Regarding the selection of the government office location, each local government is competing, claiming "our area is the optimal candidate." The location of the government office was the most controversial issue until the launch of the Bu-Ul-Gyeong Mega City. Currently, the regulation vaguely states it as "the region that is geographically central and serves as the center of Bu-Ul-Gyeong."

There are also murmurs about the agreement to form a unified council consisting of 27 members, including 9 from each city and province of Bu-Ul-Gyeong. In the Gyeongnam region, there are claims that "it is wrong considering the population distribution of 3.5 million in Gyeongnam and 1.1 million in Ulsan, as well as the distribution of metropolitan council members (Gyeongnam 58, Busan 47, Ulsan 22)." Conflicts are expected to erupt in the process of electing the Mega City heads and chairpersons. This is because the unified council will be formed by members recommended by the Bu-Ul-Gyeong city and provincial councils, and the heads and chairpersons will also be elected from this council. The Mega City heads will lead the organization of the Mega City, enact necessary autonomous regulations and ordinances, and prepare the budget. Conflicts are also anticipated over project approvals and financial contributions among local governments.

The fortunate aspect is that by launching before the local elections, there is a preparation period of more than six months to perform duties starting from January next year. If the Mega City launch had been postponed until after the local elections, it could have become a contentious issue in the elections, and some newly elected heads and metropolitan council members might have insisted on re-discussing from scratch, causing confusion.

The local Mega City initiative started to break the ‘capital region funnel phenomenon’ and ‘capital region unipolarism,’ where money and people concentrate in the capital area. The central government has promised support for research and development and infrastructure budgets, and there is high local expectation to create a regional economic community comparable to the capital region. Following Bu-Ul-Gyeong, Mega Cities are being pursued one after another in Chungcheong, Daegu-Gyeongbuk, Gwangju-Jeonnam, and Yongin, Seongnam, Suwon, Anseong, among others. For Bu-Ul-Gyeong to become the cornerstone of Mega City success, it is essential to lead cooperation among heads, councils, local economic circles, and civil society academia to generate synergy effects and mediate conflicts of interest.

The Japanese ‘Kansai Regional Union,’ which we benchmarked, is Japan’s first regional union established in 2010. It currently consists of ‘2 prefectures (fu), 6 counties (ken), and 4 cities (shi)’ including Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara, with a total population of 20.67 million (one-fifth of Japan’s population), and is regarded as a representative success model. The Kansai Economic Federation, a regional economic organization, led the inception and expansion of this Kansai Regional Union.

Founded in 1946, the federation proposed the idea of creating a ‘Kansai State (shu)’ beyond administrative districts in the 1950s. In 1991, it launched the catchphrase ‘Kansai is one,’ leading the establishment of various councils, competitiveness meetings, decentralization reform research groups, and promotion organizations. The unified regionalism that enabled the Mega City’s establishment and success over more than 50 years was the key.

Busan Mayor Park Hyung-jun said, "(Bu-Ul-Gyeong) is a cooperative relationship, a relationship of sharing. It is really necessary to have the mindset that we ultimately share the same roots and will become one in the future." A Mega City without a ‘one team’ spirit can only be recorded as another failed case of past regional balanced development and national land balanced development that started grandly but ended poorly. Lee Kyung-ho, Head of Social Affairs Department

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