Regional Tourism Enterprise Support Centers Newly Established in Gwangju, Ulsan, Gyeongbuk, and Jeonbuk

Support for Networking Spaces, Job Hub Operations, and Specialized Content Development

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heeyoon] The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization announced on the 31st that they have selected Gwangju Metropolitan City, Ulsan Metropolitan City, Gyeongsangbuk-do Gyeongju, and Jeollabuk-do Jeonju as the target sites for the ‘2022 Regional Tourism Enterprise Support Center Establishment Project’ through a local government contest.

This project has been implemented since 2019 to revitalize the regional tourism industry ecosystem. This year, four newly established Regional Tourism Enterprise Support Centers (hereinafter referred to as regional centers) will each receive 1 billion KRW in national funding (matched 50:50 with local government funds).

The regional centers provide residence and networking spaces for tourism venture companies, support tourism startup establishment and growth, assist traditional tourism companies in advancing, operate job hubs, and develop regionally specialized tourism content.

The four regional centers established in 2019-2020 (Busan, Incheon, Daejeon·Sejong, Gyeongnam) conducted regional-based tourism startup discovery and support projects last year. Additionally, they contributed to revitalizing the regional tourism industry through consulting and education projects to overcome the COVID-19 crisis, operating support windows for small and medium enterprise development funds, and supporting shared office residency projects.

The four newly established regional centers this year also plan to promote various projects tailored to the characteristics and circumstances of each region.

Gwangju Metropolitan City will establish a center in the Sangmu district, a central commercial area near City Hall, to enhance convenience for companies, and will carry out regionally specialized projects such as developing ICT technology convergence tourism content models and fostering Gwangju-type tourism creators.

Ulsan Metropolitan City plans to build a center at the Ulsan Exhibition and Convention Center located within a 1 km radius of KTX Ulsan Station. By linking with the convention center, it aims to maximize project effects by actively utilizing infrastructure strengths through tourism business demonstration support and collaborative projects with nearby universities and startup support organizations.

Gyeongsangbuk-do will establish a center in the downtown commercial area near Daereungwon in Gyeongju and is expected to create synergy effects with various regional projects such as the Hwang-o-dong Urban Regeneration New Deal and the Seorabeol Golden Garden Project (urban resting place creation), which are being promoted to revitalize the commercial district.

Jeollabuk-do will establish a center near Jeonju Hanok Village, a representative domestic tourism resource, to improve on-site accessibility for tourism venture companies. It is promoting diverse regionally specialized support projects such as matching companies within the province with digital technology-holding companies and holding innovative travel product contests.

The four new regional centers are scheduled to open in July after about three months of infrastructure construction and signing business agreements between the Korea Tourism Organization and local governments.

Jung Geunhee, head of the Tourism Job Team at the Korea Tourism Organization, said, “Once the new regional centers open, nine regions including Seoul among the 17 metropolitan cities and provinces nationwide will have tourism enterprise support centers. At a time when public support for the tourism industry is more urgently needed than ever due to COVID-19, we will strive to make the regional centers a strong support force and a base for startup and growth for the tourism industry’s leap forward.”