Islands Nationwide Gathered... Ulleung-gun Hosts 'Island Area Basic Local Government Heads' Council'

On the 14th, 28 local governments nationwide that possess islands, including Ulleung-gun in Gyeongbuk, held a regular meeting of the ‘Island Area Basic Local Governments Council’ at the Gunsan Saemangeum Convention Center (GSCO).

The ‘Island Local Governments Council’ was founded in 2012 with the participation of 10 island local governments. It was newly launched as an administrative council of local governments expanded to 28 local governments, coinciding with the ‘2nd Island Day’ held in Tongyeong, Gyeongnam in 2021.

A regular meeting of the 'Island Area Basic Local Government Heads Council' is being held at the Gunsan Saemangeum Convention Center.

The regular meeting was held under the chairmanship of Nam Han-kwon, the 8th president in 2023 and the mayor of Ulleung-gun, with about 100 council members and local government heads in attendance.

The event featured promotion of a total of 10 events from 7 local governments, including Ulleung-gun’s ‘4th Island Day Event,’ Gunsan City’s ‘2023 Promotion Year of the Gogunsan Archipelago,’ Boryeong City’s ‘26th Boryeong Mud Festival,’ Mokpo City’s ‘2023 Jeollanam-do National Sports Festival and Para Sports Festival,’ Yeosu City’s ‘2026 Yeosu World Island Expo,’ Wando-gun’s ‘2023 Wando Jangbogo Seafood Festival,’ and Hadong-gun’s ‘2023 Hadong World Tea Expo,’ sharing information among local governments.

Additionally, since currently only passenger ships receive vehicle fare support, a proposal was made to amend related laws to resolve the fare burden issue for island residents using cargo ships through ‘vehicle fare support for cargo ships for island residents.’

Following the regular meeting, a roundtable was held to explore island development. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety’s Balanced Development Project presented the government’s island policy direction, and the Korea Island Promotion Agency gave a presentation on the vision and tasks for the future of Korea’s islands. Discussions focused especially on issues such as population decline, medical care, and education.

After the roundtable, the regular meeting concluded with plans to hold an academic conference at the 4th Island Day event to invite related experts and seek solutions. Nam Han-kwon, the mayor of Ulleung-gun, was selected as the 8th president this year as the host of the Island Day event.

Mayor Nam said, “This meeting was meaningful as it allowed us to communicate and share the value and potential of Korea’s islands,” adding, “We are preparing a variety of events that embody the identity of Ulleung Island, including the history and culture of Ulleungdo and Dokdo, local cuisine, and natural resources, for the 4th Island Day event to be held in Ulleung-gun, and we hope for much interest and participation.”