Visit to Goyang City KINTEX 2020 RoboWorld... Regulatory Innovation On-site Dialogue
Jung "Improving Job Quality with Robots and Helping the Elderly and Disabled"
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun speaking at the on-site dialogue for regulatory innovation in the robot industry during '2020 RoboWorld,' a specialized robot industry exhibition held on the 28th at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. (Photo by Yonhap News)
[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun stated on the 28th, "The government aims to enter the ranks of the world's top four robot powers by 2023 and will do its utmost to support the robotics industry."
On the same day, Prime Minister Chung visited the 2020 RoboWorld event held at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, and presided over an on-site dialogue on regulatory innovation under the theme "Walking the Future with Robots, Robotics Industry and Regulatory Innovation," where he made these remarks.
Prime Minister Chung said, "The industrial structure is being reorganized around new industries with high growth potential due to the Fourth Industrial Revolution," adding, "In June, we announced the 'Top 10 Regulatory Innovation Agendas' and are focusing on regulatory innovation in new industries that will determine our future, such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, future cars, bio-health, and the hydrogen economy."
He explained, "When I attended the '1st RoboWorld event' in 2006 as Minister of Commerce, Industry and Energy, and now returning to this event, the scope and speed of change are truly astonishing," and added, "The global robotics market is also growing at 25% annually and is expected to reach 81 trillion won by 2022."
He continued, "The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is expected to further expand the demand for robots as a non-face-to-face industry," and "Countries like the United States, Japan, and China are already fiercely competing to secure market dominance."
According to Prime Minister Chung, Daewoo Heavy Industries domestically produced Korea's first robot in 1984. In 2008, Korea became the first country in the world to enact a robot law. Thanks to the joint efforts of the public and private sectors, Korea has now grown into one of the world's top five robot powers.
Prime Minister Chung said, "Building on this strength, the government will do its best to support the robotics industry with the goal of entering the global top four robot powers by 2023," adding, "We will especially focus on fostering the robotics industry in three major manufacturing sectors?foundry, textile, and food and beverage?and four major service sectors?caregiving, wearable devices, medical, and logistics."
He added, "Next year's robotics budget will be set at around 200 billion won, a 32% increase from this year, to actively support research and development (R&D) and workforce training."
Prime Minister Chung stated, "We will proactively revise outdated regulations that hinder the development of the robotics industry under the principle of 'permission first, regulation later,'" and "The regulatory innovation roadmap announced today includes 33 initiatives to establish a foundation for robot utilization and to revise regulations that impede robot use in various fields."
He noted, "As robot utilization increases, new social issues are emerging, and job-related concerns are among them."
He continued, "Robots can create new jobs and assist with simple or dangerous tasks, improving the quality of jobs," emphasizing, "They can also be used in services for the elderly and disabled, which is especially meaningful for us facing low birth rates and an aging population."
Prime Minister Chung concluded, "Considering this, we will accelerate the establishment of social systems for coexistence with robots, such as employment safety nets, safety standards revision, and new technology education."
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