Chairman Im Yuntaek of Muan County Council: "We Will Overcome the Crisis of Local Extinction by Designating a Cultural City"

5-Minute Free Speech... Utilizing the 'Power of Culture' as an Opportunity for Muan-gun's Rebound

Im Yuntaek, Chairman of the Administrative, Cultural, and Welfare Committee of the Jeonnam Muan County Council (Chairman Kim Kyunghyun), stated in a 5-minute free speech at the 288th extraordinary session plenary meeting held on the 7th, "The power of culture is an opportunity for Muan County's leap forward."

A legal cultural city is a city designated under the Regional Culture Promotion Act to effectively utilize distinctive cultural resources by region and strengthen cultural creativity. Designated local governments receive up to 10 billion KRW in national funding over five years according to regional characteristics to promote the creation and regeneration of cultural spaces, discovery and utilization of resident-led cultural content, and cultivation of cultural personnel.

Im Yuntaek, chairman of the Muan County Council, is delivering a 5-minute free speech at the 1st plenary session of the 288th extraordinary meeting.
[Photo by Muan County Council]

In this regard, Chairman Im Yuntaek emphasized, "If Muan County is designated as a cultural city, it will play a significant role not only in expanding cultural infrastructure but also in improving the cultural quality of life for local residents, creating jobs, and achieving sustainable regional development," adding, "To receive cultural city designation, generous investment and support measures must be prepared to discover cultural resources and build infrastructure."

He continued, "The administration must actively step forward to establish a support system for local artists at the center of culture and expand cultural infrastructure for artists' creative activities," and said, "I also propose the operation of resident-led cultural programs alongside support for artists."

Furthermore, he added, "In line with the government's core task of promoting regional cultural policies in the era of decentralization, our Muan County must prepare for designation as a legal cultural city."

He also stressed, "In regions facing difficulties such as population decline and aging, designation as a cultural city, a project to promote regional cultural vitality, will serve as a catalyst to breathe new life through culture and be a way to bridge cultural gaps between regions."

Chairman Im Yuntaek concluded his 5-minute free speech by saying, "I hope efforts will be made to achieve cultural city designation befitting the status of Happy Muan with a population of 100,000."

Muan = Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Oh Hwanju just8440@asiae.co.kr