[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters reporters Song Jong-gu and Lee Se-ryeong] Park Wan-su, Governor of Gyeongnam Province, decisively won the local election that marked the end of the acting governor system and took the helm of the ‘Gyeongnam ship’ on July 1, nearly a year after it lost its captain.
Starting as a clerk at the Gyeongnam Provincial Office, he has been a ‘Gyeongnam person’ to the core, serving as Hapcheon County Governor, Deputy Mayor of Gimhae City, Mayor of Changwon, Mayor of the integrated Changwon including Masan, Changwon, and Jinhae, and as a member of the National Assembly (Changwon Uichang). It seems natural that Gyeongnam called upon him to fully open the era of local governance.
Only the central political stage treated him like a political rookie, but Governor Park is read as an administrative expert and innovator with a brilliant career. During his time as Mayor of Changwon, he launched ‘Nubija,’ Korea’s first public bicycle policy, and created the city identity and brand of ‘Environmental Capital’ Changwon. His reformist administration consistently placed him among the world’s top reformist mayors whenever the UK City Mayors Foundation ranked them.
As the 8th popularly elected governor, Park Wan-su says, “I will create a welfare Gyeongnam where everyone prospers through my experience in management and administration.” Known as a CEO-type administrative expert, Governor Park, after more than two months in office, shared with our paper his plans for regional development and innovation strategies for Gyeongnam.
Q. Gyeongnam has frequently had acting governors compared to other provinces. What is the first priority to address?
- Until now, governors with political backgrounds have used the office for political self-interest. The unprepared administrative gaps caused a decline in Gyeongnam’s economy and residents’ quality of life, and the burden fell entirely on the people.
Gyeongnam must no longer be swayed by individual political moves. For the greater good of Gyeongnam’s development and the stability of people’s livelihoods, I will be a governor who focuses all efforts without distraction.
My top priority immediately after taking office is ‘reviving the economy.’ Due to the slump in key industries, personal income has fallen to the lowest nationwide, and recently employment and unemployment rates have worsened.
To revive the economy, I will actively attract companies and investments and promote startups. I will create long-term plans focusing on comparative advantage industries such as aerospace, nuclear power, and defense. I also plan to advance key industries like machinery, shipbuilding, and automotive, and foster new industries such as hydrogen, next-generation nuclear power, metaverse, and artificial intelligence.
Q. You said economic recovery and job creation are top priorities for Gyeongnam’s resurgence, which once had economic power second only to the Seoul metropolitan area. Could you elaborate?
- The core of economic recovery and job creation lies in attracting investment. Gyeongnam is a hub for Korea’s core industries, including traditional manufacturing like shipbuilding and machinery, as well as aerospace, defense, and nuclear power industries. With enhanced logistics and transportation infrastructure such as Jinhae New Port, the Southern Inland High-Speed Railway, and Gadeokdo New Airport, it has emerged as an optimal location for businesses.
We have formed an Investment Attraction Advisory Committee and a dedicated investment attraction agency to actively attract companies and investments.
The most important factor in attracting investment is investment information. We launched the advisory committee with 17 capable members, including former Deloitte Anjin Accounting Firm Chairman Lee Jae-sul, and former CEOs and executives from major corporations such as SK, Lotte, GS Construction, LG Electronics, CJ, Doosan Enerbility, POSCO, BNK, and IBK, as well as financial experts.
This committee will serve as the spearhead for attracting companies and investments. Specifically, it will provide advice on strategy formulation and implementation, review projects of potential investors, gather investment information from large corporations and foreign-invested companies, and promote investment attraction by discovering investment companies in the metropolitan area.
The investment attraction team is placed directly under the Deputy Governor for Economy, and we are accelerating the establishment of the Gyeongnam Investment and Economic Promotion Agency, a dedicated investment attraction institution.
Additionally, we will offer exceptional incentives such as special support for large-scale investors, expanded investment promotion subsidies, and rent support. We will strengthen one-stop services through resolving unreasonable regulations and supporting site selection, policy financing, and administrative processing via the Corporate Investment Success Support Center.
Q. The Aerospace Administration Agency has been established in Sacheon. What are the development plans for the aerospace industry centered on Western Gyeongnam?
- Gyeongnam is the largest production base for the domestic aerospace industry, accounting for 69.9% of domestic production in 2020 and 40.4% in the space industry sector. The establishment of the Aerospace Administration Agency has been confirmed as a government national agenda, and we are actively coordinating with the National Assembly and central government ministries for early establishment.
We are also promoting the designation of a space cluster to strengthen private-led space development capabilities and create a self-sustaining industrial ecosystem for the aerospace industry.
The private sector, companies, and markets are crucial to securing core competitiveness in the future space sector. We will establish strategies based on a long-term vision and lead technology innovation centered on the private sector. We will nurture startups as well as large companies to foster world-class innovative enterprises.
Q. There is a fiscal soundness issue and a debt burden of 1 trillion won. What are your future plans?
- Debt has increased by nearly 1 trillion won over the past four years. The rapid increase in a short period is not considered normal debt management. To reverse this, after taking office, I initiated fiscal reform by early repayment of 90.4 billion won of debt through expenditure restructuring in the second supplementary budget this year.
Next year’s initial budget will also be based on sound fiscal management with strong expenditure restructuring. We will re-examine all projects from scratch to determine if they are necessary for residents and boldly reorganize unnecessary or low-effect projects. About 10% of the secured resources will be prioritized for debt repayment to reduce accumulated debt.
Furthermore, we will establish Gyeongnam-style fiscal rules to ensure fiscal expenditures follow principles and standards even if the governor changes, building a sustainable sound fiscal system.
Q. There is a tug-of-war with the Gyeongnam Office of Education over next year’s school meal budget. What about the cost-sharing rate for free school meals?
- Gyeongnam Province is implementing welfare projects and various policies with limited resources, but fiscal conditions are worsening. The recent difficult economic situation continues, and the province’s debt exceeds 1 trillion won, with cities and counties also burdened with 800 billion won.
The government has announced a high-intensity fiscal tightening for next year’s budget, raising alarms about fiscal emergencies and concerns about disruptions to various pending projects.
In contrast, the Office of Education has no debt and has accumulated over 1 trillion won in fiscal stabilization funds, making it relatively more financially comfortable than the province. Rapid recent inflation has inevitably increased food material costs, further increasing the financial burden on the province and 18 cities and counties.
We have communicated these fiscal conditions to the Office of Education and are negotiating adjustments to the cost-sharing rate for education cooperation projects, including school meals. We aim to reach a smooth agreement with the Office of Education to stably supply quality school meals.
Q. You decided to operate an ‘Open Governor’s Office’ to communicate directly with residents. Could you explain?
- I have said I will reflect residents’ opinions in administration. To increase communication with residents, I emphasized to staff that we should not avoid but actively respond to visiting complaints.
Since mid-August, we have set up a space on the first floor of the provincial government main building to operate the Open Governor’s Office. We will actively respond to complaints and, if necessary, the governor will meet directly. We will listen more attentively to residents’ voices and conduct administration centered on the people.
Q. You decided to use the Governor’s official residence as a tourist attraction for residents. What are the specific plans?
- The Governor’s residence and the residents’ house must have clear themes so that many young people and residents can use them. Since June, we have collected residents’ opinions and decided to use them as complex cultural spaces.
The residents’ house will be developed as a representative youth culture space linked with Garosugil, and we are planning the utilization of the Governor’s residence. Specific plans will be announced after a public hearing in September. Before investing in facilities, we will open the current facilities as they are and operate programs while reflecting residents’ opinions.
We will also develop various content to ensure the Governor’s residence and residents’ house are properly utilized.
Governor Park Wan-su inspecting the heatwave response system at the construction site of Local Road No. 60 between Gimhae City and Saengnim, Gyeongnam, last July.
Q. You said you want to leave office with applause. What kind of governor do you think deserves applause from residents?
- I want to be remembered as a governor who devoted passion to administration and truly worked only for the residents.
Starting my public service career at Gyeongnam Provincial Office, I have accumulated diverse experiences as Mayor of Changwon, President of Incheon International Airport Corporation, and a two-term member of the National Assembly, all as a career administrator. Based on these experiences, I will create changes that residents can feel.
I will make efforts to recover the difficult regional economy, maximize regional strengths, and firmly prepare food sources for future generations. I will also humbly listen to residents’ stories to repay their support.
Q. A word to residents and colleagues you will work with?
- Many people, including public officials, local politicians, and institutions, must join forces. Public officials may find the winds of change unfamiliar and difficult, but they should think that this will enhance administrative competitiveness and improve residents’ lives.
I will place residents as the top priority of administration and strive to repay their trust and expectations. I want to recover Gyeongnam’s economy, create jobs, and give hope to residents before I leave office.
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