[Interview] Woosunghui Yeongam County Governor: "Creating a Greater Yeongam Soaring through Innovation"

Promotion of 'Innovation Projects' such as Namdo History, Culture, and Ecotourism Hub

Efforts to Solve Population Issues... Establishment of 'Youth Policy Support Department'

Public Library Relocation Issue, Policy to 'Reconsider' after Gath

Woosunghee, the governor of Yeongam County, is expressing his aspirations regarding the Lunar New Year operation plan and key promotion tasks.

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Jun-kyung] Woo Seung-hee, the mayor of Yeongam County in the 8th local government, has been promoting the ‘Innovative Yeongam Project’ to address challenges such as the 4th Industrial Revolution and population extinction since taking office.

On the 26th, we met Mayor Woo Seung-hee, who is striving to create a bigger and younger Yeongam with the goal of ‘A Greater Yeongam Leaping Forward through Innovation,’ to hear about his plans for county administration and key initiatives.

Mayor Woo said, “The 8th local government of Yeongam is working towards creating a sustainable Yeongam with the goal of ‘A Greater Yeongam Leaping Forward through Innovation.’ We established the ‘Innovative Yeongam Project’ to make Yeongam bigger and younger.”

The Innovative Yeongam Project he proposed includes ▲Youth-friendly future-leading economy ▲Southern region historical and cultural ecological tourism hub ▲Warm welfare empowering everyone ▲Sustainable agricultural life industry hub.

Mayor Woo explained, “The youth-friendly future-leading economy is the county’s top priority task to overcome local extinction and restore population by actively securing government funds for local extinction response and attracting investment projects, and investing budgets and policies in youth and future innovation.”

To this end, plans include ▲Youth public housing ▲Creation of youth cultural streets ▲Establishment of youth fund and youth policy support team ▲Building a Yeongam-type full employment system ▲Realizing 100 social economy organization projects ▲Creating youth jobs in agriculture, manufacturing, service, and social welfare sectors.

They will also promote attracting renewable energy companies and establishing citizen power plants that share energy self-sufficient villages and development profits, leading carbon neutrality realization and energy transition.

In particular, to prevent young people from leaving Yeongam due to educational issues, they plan to expand educational support such as fostering representative local high schools, establishing the Yeongam Future Education Foundation, a 300-person future talent development project, and supporting domestic and international youth experiential activities.

Mayor Woo expressed confidence, saying, “We will utilize Yeongam’s pristine natural environment and historic cultural heritage to make Yeongam the center of southern region historical culture and a hub for southern region historical and cultural ecological tourism. By hosting the National Park Expo and Moonlight Festival, we will turn Wolchulsan National Park from a burden into a treasure, and use flagship species such as the southern turtle and the insect museum to transform Yeongam into a representative ecological tourism brand.”

He added, “We will restore Yeongam Eupseong Fortress and turn various historical and cultural tourism resources such as Han Seok-bong, Wang In, Cheonjamun, and Doseon into content, and establish a cultural tourism foundation. We will promote balanced development of 11 towns and townships by making Samho-eup the economic heart of the region, Yeongam-eup the genuine county office location, Gurim a cultural tourism special zone, and installing a loess research center in Dobo.”

He emphasized, “We will attract lodging facilities such as sports hotels and youth hostels, create food streets, remodel shopping districts, and form a commercial revitalization promotion team to make Yeongam a place where people stay and visit.”

He reiterated, “We will create a prosperous Yeongam through expanding item-specific storage facilities, establishing an agricultural product specialized distribution corporation, reviving the Gichan Market, introducing basic rural income for all residents and expanding farmers’ allowances, setting up hometown love funds and agricultural specialty product returns, and a win-win strategy for livestock and crop farmers.”

To realize welfare for Yeongam residents, they plan to strengthen resident life services by establishing a care system and productive welfare system through evaluation and monitoring.

For this purpose, projects include ▲Introducing a resident primary care physician system ▲Constructing a women’s center and lifelong education center ▲Installing elevators in public facilities ▲Introducing low-floor buses ▲Establishing rehabilitation workshops for the disabled and migrant centers ▲Realizing Yeongam-type child welfare ▲Introducing senior health mileage ▲Supplementing the health care system.

Regarding the Yeongam County organizational restructuring, it will proceed considering sufficient understanding of tasks, continuity of work, and residents’ requests to avoid frequent personnel changes. Above all, the organization will be restructured so that public officials who work properly for residents are recognized.

Mayor Woo said, “To solve population issues, we have planned to establish a youth policy support department,” and expressed, “We will create an organization that can promote customized policies suitable for local conditions.”

On measures to address population decline, Mayor Woo stated, “It is important to make Yeongam a place where young people do not leave. We need to improve living conditions for young people in education, culture, and medical care. Especially, securing roles and jobs for youth in various fields is paramount.”

Mayor Woo proposed, “We will improve living conditions with the establishment of a youth policy team and youth fund for introducing new agricultural technologies and diversifying industries, as well as youth housing and cultural streets.”

He cited his greatest strengths as “diverse political experience and youth.”

He declared, “I will leverage the advantage of being the ‘young mayor Woo Seung-hee’ trusted by residents. I will fill Yeongam with young ideas and new methods. With the power of youth, I will dedicate everything to ensure waves of change and innovation overflow in Yeongam and the flowers of residents’ happiness bloom.”

Among other key pledges to be prioritized after taking office are ▲Administrative innovation and regional innovation ▲Overcoming local extinction ▲Issues related to the new site for Yeongam Public Library relocation ▲Solving manpower shortages in rural areas and Daebul Industrial Complex.

Meanwhile, the issue of the new site for Yeongam Public Library relocation will be reconsidered after gathering opinions from Yeongam residents.

Mayor Woo stated, “The previously planned site for the new Yeongam Public Library was selected as Gichan Land, which is inconvenient to access, without collecting opinions from students and parents. Therefore, we will newly decide the site considering opinions from residents who will be directly affected, consultations with the Provincial Office of Education, accessibility, and symbolism.”

Woo Seung-hee was born in 1973 in Yeongam, Jeollanam-do. After graduating from Inseong High School, he majored in Political Science and Diplomacy. He served as a secretary and aide to a member of the National Assembly in 2010 and was elected as a member of the 10th and 11th Jeollanam-do Provincial Assembly. He later served as chairman of the Education Committee of the 11th Jeollanam-do Provincial Assembly, earning recognition for his outstanding insight and leadership in setting the direction of Jeonnam education. In the local elections held last June, he was elected as the 43rd mayor of Yeongam County.