Only the Name is 'Green New Deal'... Many Projects Already Underway

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Selects Small-scale Regeneration Projects but Criticized for "Only Different Names" in Tourism Products and Shared Space Development

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo In-ho] The newly included 'Green New Deal' as part of the Korean New Deal policy is showing signs of going off track. There is a growing atmosphere where even small-scale urban regeneration projects at the local government level, such as alley road paving and neighborhood tourism product development, are simply being renamed as 'New Deal' or 'Green New Deal.'

According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) and local governments on the 25th, MOLIT recently selected 75 small-scale regeneration project sites nationwide, including the alley maintenance project on Songjeong 10-gil in Seongdong-gu, Seoul, and the creation of the entrance road outside the East Gate of Seongju-eupseong in Seongju-gun, Gyeongbuk. Small-scale regeneration projects are those where basic local governments identify projects that can be completed within 1 to 2 years based on resident applications, and the government provides up to 200 million KRW per site in national funding after review.

MOLIT explained that the announcement of this year's small-scale regeneration project targets is meaningful in fostering the capacity to smoothly promote future New Deal projects. It also emphasized that the selection this year focused on reflecting diverse regional characteristics and whether the projects have potential and connectivity to develop into New Deal projects.

However, contrary to MOLIT's explanation, critics point out that small-scale regeneration projects are merely financial projects that started as early as 2018, before President Moon declared the New Deal policy. In fact, MOLIT selected a total of 145 small-scale urban regeneration project sites from 2018 to 2019. It is essentially just repackaging financial projects funded by national funds as 'New Deal' or 'Green New Deal.'

Experts point out that among the 75 sites selected for this year's small-scale urban regeneration projects, very few will actually lead to New Deal or Green New Deal projects. For example, a community space creation project for generational empathy activation promoted by local government A (national funding 200 million KRW) and an alley maintenance project by local government B (national funding 200 million KRW) are simply projects for repairing aging buildings and roads, unrelated to the New Deal, which focuses on job creation.

Because of this, experts are calling for the government to clearly present the policy direction and portfolio of the New Deal and Green New Deal before relevant ministries such as MOLIT proceed with related projects. An urban regeneration project expert said, "Since the announcement of the Korean New Deal, the government and local governments have been competitively bringing out the name New Deal everywhere," adding, "If existing financial projects are repackaged as new policies, the effectiveness of New Deal and Green New Deal projects cannot be guaranteed, so the government needs to prepare systematically."