Goheung-gun Wins '1st Customer Trust No.1 Premium Brand Award'

Selected as a Leading City in the 'Return to Farming and Rural Settlement' Category Where People Come Back

[Goheung=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Shim Jeong-woo] Jeonnam Goheung-gun (Governor Song Gwi-geun) announced on the 18th that it was selected as the leading city for returning to farming and rural areas in the ‘1st 2021 Customer Trust No.1 Premium Brand Awards’ hosted by JoongAng Ilbo and sponsored by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the Ministry of Health and Welfare, and JTBC.

Since the 7th local government administration, Goheung-gun established the Population Policy Division, the first among local governments nationwide, and has been implementing a five-year population policy plan centered on three major population strategies?Youth Return, Child Happiness, and Returning to Hometown and Rural Areas (Returning to Farming and Fishing)?with 9 tasks and 50 policies.

As a result, from July 2018, when the 7th local government administration began, 4,804 people (equivalent to the size of one township) who returned to farming, fishing, or rural areas moved into Goheung. In the ‘Urban Citizens Returning to Farming Statistics’ jointly announced by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Statistics Korea, and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Goheung ranked first nationwide in 2019 and third in 2020.

Additionally, in the regional development index evaluation indicating population growth potential announced by the Korea Rural Economic Institute in 2020, Goheung recorded 4th place nationwide in the ‘Regional Reproduction Index,’ signaling a positive outlook for solving population issues.

Goheung-gun opened the nation’s first ‘Returning to Farming and Rural Happiness School’ directly operated by a local government, providing pre-education and on-site practical training for urban citizens wishing to return to farming and rural areas, along with temporary residential facilities, gaining great popularity.

Moreover, aiming to raise 10 billion KRW for the ‘My Love Goheung Fund,’ Goheung has already secured 9 billion KRW to support returning youth settlement incentives, housing repair costs, business succession funds, youth challenge projects, and provides startup funds and living base support for returning farmers and fishermen, promoting various policies to attract and stabilize returnees.

A county official stated, “We will continue to discover and implement various policies to create a happy Goheung where people return, as a representative city leading returning to farming and rural areas.”

Goheung=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Shim Jeong-woo sevenshim@asiae.co.kr