"Thank You for Your Valuable Ideas" Chairman Chey Tae-won Sends Text to 7,000 People

Letter to Applicants for the National Development Project Contest

Lee Seung-geon, CEO of Toss (from the left), Choi Tae-won, Chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Kim Taek-jin, CCO of NCSoft, Lee Nari, CEO of HeyJoyce, Park Hee-eun, Partner at Altos Ventures, Lee Han-joo, CEO of Bespin Global, and broadcaster Jeon Hyun-moo are filming the audition broadcast for the national development contest in the corporate category. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] "I sincerely thank each and every one of you who submitted valuable ideas."

Choi Tae-won, Chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), sent letters and messages expressing gratitude to those who participated in the national development project contest. This project, which Chairman Choi has been diligently promoting since his inauguration, was initiated with the aim of having the entire nation come together to solve national challenges in the post-COVID-19 era.

Initially, KCCI expected to receive about 2,000 submissions during the 100-day application period. In reality, approximately 7,200 people submitted 4,704 projects. This is evidence of the high level of public interest in social issues. Prominent business leaders serving on the KCCI board also appeared on broadcasts to widely promote the contest.

Chairman Choi made it clear that the judging process for this contest would be conducted transparently and rigorously. According to KCCI, about 30 experts will conduct document screening, and ideas will be further developed through mentoring by business leaders and collective intelligence from the public. The final audition will also be held with public support.

KCCI plans to establish a permanent idea bank. This means that even ideas not selected in this contest will have a marketplace for future rewards. Chairman Choi said, "We will find ways to help national development with ideas that were not selected this time," adding, "Our goal is to open a permanent platform where citizens' ideas can be freely created, exchanged, and developed."

This project will proceed with document screening this month, followed by business leader mentoring and collective intelligence next month, and the selection of this year’s projects in December. The document screening results can be checked on the website starting at 9 a.m. on the 28th.