[2023 Budget] Despite Tightening... Clear Spending on Future Technology Investments

Budget for Material and Component Technology Development Exceeds 100 Billion KRW
Diversifying Import Sources for Items with High Overseas Dependence
Expanding Support for Advanced Industries Despite Reduced Job Budgets

President Yoon Suk-yeol is answering reporters' questions as he arrives at the Yongsan Presidential Office Building in Seoul on the morning of the 29th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

"We will definitely spend money when investing in the future."

Despite the government's shift toward austerity and sound fiscal policy, the budget for future growth engines such as advanced industry research and development and supply chain expansion has been significantly increased. This reflects President Yoon Seok-yeol's policy stance of not sparing the budget for people's livelihoods and the nation's future.

Looking at next year's budget proposal, the budget for materials and components technology development will increase by nearly 100 billion won to 937.6 billion won compared to this year. Amid growing supply chain instability due to the Ukraine crisis and other factors, the plan is to focus on demand-linked technology development to reduce overseas dependence on materials and components and to secure future markets.

Additionally, to diversify import sources for items highly dependent on specific countries, a budget of 1.6 billion won for the "Comprehensive Support for Materials, Components, and Equipment Supply Chain Stability" has been allocated for the first time next year. This is to proactively respond to supply chain crises through supply chain consulting support and the operation of an early warning system based on in-depth global supply chain analysis.

While the job budget for next year has decreased by nearly 2 trillion won, it is notable that support for advanced industry jobs has increased. Considering the worsening manpower shortage in key industries such as semiconductors, efforts will be made to ease workforce supply and demand through the establishment of advanced industry specialized work-study dual centers and the creation of new advanced industry departments at Polytechnics. In university education, 48 billion won has been allocated to expand the enrollment of semiconductor-specialized universities and 15 billion won to establish short-term training courses to nurture an additional 150,000 semiconductor workers over the next 10 years.

Challenging research in unexplored fields such as future energy including nuclear fusion, intractable diseases, and robotics will also be supported. These fields have a high possibility of failure, but if successful, they can lead the market by securing technology, thus requiring long-term national investment. The dementia overcoming research and development project, with a budget of 26.8 billion won next year, is a representative example.

In addition, in the environmental sector, focused investment will be made in the green economy, including carbon neutrality, which can secure new growth engines. Budgets of 161.7 billion won and 90.9 billion won have been allocated respectively for expanding infrastructure to manage greenhouse gases and installing smart eco-factories to help process innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises with high carbon emissions. To achieve scientifically and practically the greenhouse gas reduction targets by 2030, the number of zero-emission vehicles such as electric and hydrogen commercial vehicles will be increased by 290,000 units, and charging facilities will be expanded by more than 60,000 units.