Yugeun-gi, Gokseong County Governor, Focuses on Education and Youth Job Creation

Promoting Agriculture to Get Fair Prices through Agricultural Product Branding

Laying the Foundation for 5 Million Tourists through Ecological and Experiential Tourism

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Chunsu] On the 1st, Yu Geun-gi, the mayor of Gokseong County, vowed to "deliver tangible results of change and innovation" on the occasion of the 2nd anniversary of the 7th local government administration.

The county held a simple 2nd anniversary ceremony of the 7th local government administration at the Daetongmaru inside the government office building, with employees and some residents attending due to COVID-19.

The event began with a video summarizing the past two years, followed by awards presented to outstanding residents and public officials, and concluded with a commemorative speech.

Mayor Yu raised his voice to open Gokseong as the No. 1 happiness index for coexistence and mutual prosperity. He especially emphasized that the driving force of change is the cooperation and proactive attitude of residents and public officials, urging participation in change and innovation for a new century.

Among the most important achievements over the past two years, he mentioned the education sector. During the 7th local government administration, Gokseong County established the Future Education Cooperation Center, the first cooperative system between a local government and an education support office in Jeonnam Province.

Through this, unique educational programs such as forest creative education, village textbook production, and travel boxes are being promoted in Gokseong. This year, the center will be upgraded to the Future Education Foundation, aiming to mark a new educational ecosystem where children and adults learn and grow together.

He stressed that Gokseong County must become a place of opportunity for young people. To this end, over the past two years, Gokseong County has promoted 28 Youth Happiness Stores and 4 Challenge Markets.

Additionally, a youth nurturing system was established to continuously discover youth policies and manage them effectively. Mayor Yu stated that young people who admire rural life should not leave the countryside due to economic reasons.

To address this, he announced plans to respond to economic issues through strengthening support for small business owners, revitalizing the Simcheong gift certificate, and developing regional hub growth industries.

In the agricultural sector, he cited the branding of agricultural products such as taro, melon, and Baeksemi rice as achievements. During the 7th local government administration, Gokseong County succeeded in registering the taro geographical indication system for the first time nationwide and has been working on developing melon processed products such as melon smoothies to ensure fair prices for agriculture.

Mayor Yu mentioned population as the most urgent issue and appealed for efforts from all departments to solve the population problem.

He particularly argued that increasing the proportion of children and youth to restore a healthy population structure is essential to enhance the region's growth potential.

To this end, plans include actively creating public sector jobs such as the Art Factory youth apprenticeship support project and local community jobs to attract young people.

In the tourism sector, he announced a focus on the Seomjin River. He pledged to expand the spatial scope of the Train Village, which has been the center of Gokseong County's tourism industry for 15 years, to the Seomjin River, laying the foundation for an era of 5 million tourists. Strategic projects include wetland ecological tourism in Chimshil, the creation of a specialized steam locomotive station, and the Amnok Imagination School.

Furthermore, Gokseong is creating a desirable living environment across all fields including culture, welfare, and health with facilities such as Gallery 107, the multicultural family communication space ‘Dagaon’, and the dementia relief center.

In particular, Mayor Yu continuously emphasized that the participation of residents and public officials is essential for building the ‘City of Hopeful Families, Gokseong’. He concluded his commemorative speech by expressing his determination to operate the county government with sincerity and passion without giving up.