Hong Nampyo, Changwon Special City Mayor, Begins First External Activity with Visit to National Assembly

8 Public Institutions Including Si, Jeongi-yeon, Jaeryo-yeon
Jointly Request National Funding to Local Members of the National Assembly at the National Assembly

Changwon Special City in Gyeongnam held a joint meeting at the National Assembly Main Building, inviting local members of the National Assembly.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Song Jong-gu] “We will restore the vitality of Changwon's economy, take care of people's livelihoods, and open a hopeful future.”

Hong Nampyo, Mayor of Changwon Special City, Gyeongnam, has embarked on his first official external activity to realize this goal. The starting point is securing national funding.

With the government announcing strong expenditure restructuring from next year, securing national funds for local government projects has become more difficult, making the role of local members of the National Assembly in securing next year's budget more important than ever.

Accordingly, on the 14th at 11 a.m., the city held a joint meeting at the National Assembly Main Building, inviting local members of the National Assembly to discuss 'National Fund Support Projects and Policy Proposals.'

Attendees included local members of the National Assembly such as Kim Young-sun, Kang Ki-yoon, Choi Hyung-doo, Yoon Han-hong, and Lee Dal-gon, as well as Lee Jeong-hwan, Director of the Korea Institute of Materials Science, Kim Nam-gyun, Acting Director of the Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute, and Myung No-heon, Director of the Masan Regional Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Office. Changwon University, Munsung University, Changshin University, and Polytech VII University also submitted proposal materials.

This meeting, the first external meeting of Mayor Hong Nampyo's administration and the first ever held in Changwon City, included related institutions within the region to secure national funding.

The purpose of the joint meeting was that regardless of which institution in the jurisdiction secures government budget, the ultimate beneficiaries are the citizens and companies of Changwon, so all related institutions must cooperate to secure national funds.

A total of 74 key proposed projects were discussed that day, including 24 from Changwon City, 6 from the Electrotechnology Research Institute, 5 from the Materials Research Institute, 4 from universities, and 2 from the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Office, focusing on 41 core projects related to nuclear power, future industries, and port logistics.

Emphasizing 'change' and 'innovation' for the development of Changwon City, Mayor Hong first raised 'early normalization of the nuclear power industry' as the key topic of policy proposals that day.

He stressed that government budget support is necessary to restore the ecosystem of companies weakened by the previous nuclear phase-out policy, supporting early normalization of nuclear power through fostering future nuclear power companies, finance, and technical consulting.

Mayor Hong said, “If next year’s budget is secured, it should be well absorbed by the necessary companies so that sufficient vitality is regained before the construction of Shin Hanul Units 3 and 4 resumes in 2025, otherwise the ripple effect to local companies will not come immediately,” reiterating the importance of early normalization of the nuclear power industry.

In addition, active proposals were made for key city projects and presidential Gyeongnam pledge projects, including ▲ fostering the future urban air mobility (UAM) industry ▲ inclusion of the southern region wide-area tourism development as a national project ▲ fostering culture, arts, and content industries in Masan Marine New City ▲ employment stability support projects for nuclear power SMEs ▲ expansion designation of port hinterlands for Busan Port (New Port, Jinhae New Port).

Furthermore, 17 related institution proposals such as ▲ establishment of an eco-friendly power equipment cluster (Electrotechnology Research Institute) ▲ construction of a next-generation nuclear power core materials and components development center (Materials Research Institute) ▲ creation of a ‘Startup Venture Town’ utilizing university idle spaces (Changwon University) were also actively requested for policy support at the National Assembly level.

Mayor Hong stated, “Since the budgets of institutions in Changwon ultimately lead to employment of Changwon people, consumption in Changwon, and benefits for Changwon companies, it is important to form a collaborative system with one heart and mind rather than working in a segmented way to secure government budgets in an integrated manner. I propose that related institutions and members of the National Assembly continue to gather wisdom together so that the urgent projects shared here can be carried out without any setbacks.”