Accelerating Legislation of the Jeollanam Special Self-Governing Province Act as a Catalyst for the Regional Era

Jeollanam-do is focusing all its efforts on enacting the "Jeollanam Special Self-Governing Province Special Act" in the first half of 2025 to create a "Great Leap Jeonnam Happiness Era" through the establishment of Jeollanam Special Self-Governing Province. The photo shows Jeollanam Province Governor Kim Youngrok performing a special act for the enactment of the Special Act with key attendees at the "National Assembly Seminar on the Enactment of the Jeollanam Special Self-Governing Province Special Act" held at the National Assembly Members' Office Building in Seoul on November 20, 2024. Provided by Jeonnam Province

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Jeollanam-do is focusing all its efforts in the first half of this year on enacting the "Jeollanam Special Self-Governing Province Special Act," with the goal of building the "Great Leap Forward Jeonnam Era of Happiness."

The "Jeollanam Special Self-Governing Province Special Act" was submitted to the full session of the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee in September last year and referred to the bill subcommittee, with a legislative roadmap aiming for a public hearing and subcommittee review in November to December 2024. However, due to the impact of martial law and other factors, the bill review schedule has been postponed to the following year.

The same situation applies to other regional development special acts, such as the "Gyeonggi Northern Special Self-Governing Province Special Act," the "Busan Global Hub City Special Act," and the amendments to the "Gangwon/Jeonbuk Special Acts."

Jeollanam-do has set the first half of this year as the final deadline, aiming to secure the status of a special self-governing province through passage in the National Assembly's plenary session, and is making an all-out effort to officially launch the Jeollanam Special Self-Governing Province in 2026.

To this end, the province plans to urge the swift holding of a legislative public hearing and bill subcommittee review through meetings with the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee, the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, and the leadership of both parties.

Since the bill was proposed in June last year, Jeollanam-do has laid the groundwork for building consensus on the establishment of the Jeollanam Special Self-Governing Province, with all stakeholders?including the National Assembly, city and county governments, the provincial council, and residents?speaking with one voice.

In July last year, ten National Assembly members from Jeonnam jointly issued a statement urging the enactment of the "Jeollanam Special Self-Governing Province Special Act," and in November, all Jeonnam National Assembly members co-hosted a "National Assembly Seminar," which brought nationwide attention and drew interest from both the National Assembly and the government.

In October, the Jeonnam Mayors and County Governors Association adopted a resolution urging the enactment of the Special Act, and in November, the Jeonnam Provincial Council established a "Special Committee for Promoting the Jeollanam Special Self-Governing Province." The provincial council and 22 cities and counties are also lending their support.

To enhance residents' understanding and build consensus on the establishment of the special self-governing province, a public hearing was held at the Kim Daejung Auditorium in the provincial government building on October 30. This year, the province plans to focus on informing residents about the justification and necessity of the special self-governing province through regional briefing sessions in each city and county.

The "Special Act on the Establishment of the Jeonnam Special Self-Governing Province to Overcome the Crisis of Local Extinction" was proposed on June 11 last year by Moon Geumjoo, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, with all Jeonnam-area National Assembly members participating as co-sponsors.

Major special provisions include: ▲ policies to encourage childbirth in response to low birth rates ▲ designation of special rural revitalization zones to boost rural vitality and investment ▲ transfer of licensing authority related to renewable energy to foster new energy industries ▲ development of tourist destinations to create a global tourism hub ▲ establishment of advanced science and technology complexes ▲ transfer of integrated management authority for environmentally hazardous facilities ▲ designation of international logistics zones at airports and ports ▲ authority to issue visas (regional visas) to foreign residents in the province, among others.

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