"Revitalizing Regions Through Science and Technology"… 5 New Projects Selected

Ministry of Science and ICT to Provide 5 Billion KRW Support Over 3 Years

The Ministry of Science and ICT announced on the 11th that it has newly selected five projects under the ‘Regional Innovation Mega Project’ being carried out in Gyeongbuk-Daegu (secondary batteries), Gyeongnam-Ulsan (advanced mobility), Gwangju-Jeonnam (artificial intelligence), Chungnam, and Jeonbuk (advanced bio).

The ‘Regional Innovation Mega Project’ is a key task to implement the national agenda (No. 80) of ‘securing local science and technology sovereignty to realize region-led innovative growth.’ In particular, it complements the limitations of region-led (bottom-up) or government-centered (top-down) planning methods by promoting a mutually complementary (middle-out) approach, where regions proactively discover and plan mid- to long-term regional science and technology issues, and the government supports consulting through expert groups.

This project addresses the lack of opportunities for nurturing self-sustaining new growth engines in regions from a long-term perspective, which was mainly supported by short-term projects within three years. Regions plan from basic and foundational technology development related to regional strategic industries under mid- to long-term goals to demonstration and practical application development, and plan to provide long-term support based on pilot project outcomes. Additionally, local governments can choose the appropriate cooperation method between two types?‘super-regional cooperation type’ and ‘regional innovation leap type’?considering the region’s innovation conditions, laying the groundwork to consolidate innovation capabilities at metropolitan and super-regional levels.

Through this call, five major projects to be nurtured in the mid- to long-term and a total of eight metropolitan local governments to carry them out were selected. Under the super-regional cooperation type, four projects were selected: Gyeongbuk-Daegu’s research on repurposed upcycling for raw materials technology of unmodified/ultra-long-life secondary batteries; Gyeongnam-Ulsan’s commuter technology using hydrogen fuel cell-based hybrid distributed electric propulsion systems; and Gwangju-Jeonnam’s neuromorphic semiconductor mimicking compound eyes for supervision AI. Under the regional innovation leap type, two projects were selected: Chungnam’s development of meta-platform foundational technology for marine bio strategic materials, and Jeonbuk’s development of agricultural life materials for veterinary pharmaceuticals and functional feed.

These projects will receive national funding of 5.5 billion KRW over three years from 2023 to 2025 as pilot projects (local government funds separate, at least 20%). To promote early dissemination of results and sustainable research and development (R&D), cooperation and linkage with other government projects proposed by each region will be pursued. After the pilot projects end, the government and regions will collaborate to prepare follow-up support plans, and after stage evaluations, the projects may be carried out for up to 10 years in total.

Oh Tae-seok, the 1st Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, stated, “Regions are currently facing various crises such as local extinction and talent outflow, making it more urgent than ever to establish self-sustainability. Using this project as a stepping stone, we will spare no support for regional science and technology innovation to build a regional innovation ecosystem where regions proactively plan and promote R&D and where basic and foundational achievements are reinvested into regional industries and economies.”