Naju-si, Midterm 'Inspection' of the 7th Elected Administration

Naju Mayor Kang In-gyu Chairs 2020 First Half Work Performance Report Meeting
Full Efforts to Overcome COVID-19 Prevention and Economic Crisis Including Operation of Regional Economic Countermeasures Headquarters
Notable Achievements Leveraging Naju

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yuk-bong] Naju City, Jeollanam-do (Mayor Kang In-gyu) announced on the 28th that it held the ‘2020 First Half Major Business Performance and Second Half Plan Report Meeting’ over two days on the 25th and 26th.

Mayor Kang In-gyu of Naju City, approaching the midpoint of the 7th elected term, used the report meeting to intensively review key pending projects by department and actively seek solutions for underperforming areas.

In particular, this report meeting was subdivided by each bureau and office, including the General Affairs Bureau, Safety and Urban Construction Bureau, Future Strategic Industry Bureau, Agricultural Technology Center, and Health Center, to conduct meticulous inspections and in-depth discussions on pending projects.

Major achievements in the first half of this year include △ operation of the ‘Naju City Regional Economic Countermeasures Headquarters’ in response to COVID-19 △ groundbreaking of the One-Stop Job Comprehensive Support Center △ implementation of housing cost support for young workers in small and medium enterprises △ selection for the contest of the Old Downtown Youth Startup Street Creation Project △ promotion of a friendly city where all ages and genders can be happy (women, elderly, children, etc.) △ promotion of the Jeollado Millennium History and Culture Garden △ payment of public interest allowances to farmers and fishermen △ selection for the Rural New Vitality Plus contest △ full efforts to prevent and contain the spread of COVID-19, achieving solid results across welfare, economy, youth, culture and arts, and health despite the COVID-19 crisis.

Through these efforts, Naju City achieved a remarkable feat by rising 19 places from 24th last year to 5th overall in the 2020 nationwide local government evaluation (population under 500,000) hosted by the Korean Local Autonomy Association and Hankook Ilbo this month.

Notable achievements that fully utilized Naju’s unique strengths and regional characteristics also stood out.

The city attracted external attention through initiatives such as starting the removal of anti-personnel landmines with the Army for the designation of Geumseongsan Provincial Park, △ enacting the first regional studies promotion ordinance among Honam basic local governments △ attracting a hydrogen fuel cell power plant worth 107 billion KRW to the Innovation Industrial Complex △ restoring the Namdo Literary Renaissance Naju Application △ designation as a lifelong learning city of Korea.

Especially, with the recent inclusion of the ‘Mahan Cultural Zone’ in the Special Act on the Maintenance of Historical and Cultural Areas passed by the National Assembly plenary session, Naju City saw meaningful results from its long-standing efforts advocating for the development of the Yeongsan River ancient cultural zone, starting with re-examining Mahan history through the Korea Mahan Cultural Festival, archaeological academic conferences, and publication of Mahan textbooks.

Meanwhile, the city plans to focus on key pending issues in the second half of this year, including △ active efforts to secure national treasury budgets △ establishment of the ‘Naju Energy National Industrial Complex’ as a hub for Korea’s e-new industry △ designation as a Small but Strong R&D Special Zone △ UNICEF Child-Friendly City certification △ Smart Eco-Cultural City creation project △ construction of a Life SOC Complex Center △ establishment of the government’s core agricultural policy ‘Food Plan’.

Mayor Kang In-gyu of Naju City expressed gratitude to public officials who shared the pain of citizens through quarantine and various economic support measures to overcome the crisis despite the regret of not being able to proceed as originally planned across the city administration due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, encouraging their hard work.

The mayor added, “In the second half, after passing the midpoint of the 7th elected term, I ask each department head to speedily promote the Naju Development Season 2 leading projects and the core pending policy tasks planned at the beginning of the year,” and expressed his aspiration, “Together with 120,000 citizens, we will wisely and boldly advance toward Naju, the center of Honam and the energy capital of Korea.”