Mokpo City and Education Support Office Selected as Pilot Area for 'Education Development Special Zone' Competition

Designated as a Special Zone After 3 Years of Pilot Operation and Evaluation

Local Education Finance Special Grants Expected to Support 3 to 10 Billion KRW

Mokpo City, together with the Mokpo, Muan, and Sinan Offices of Education, Muan County, and Sinan County, has been selected as a pilot area (leading area) for the Education Development Special Zone project, allowing it to receive special local education finance grants ranging from 3 billion to 10 billion KRW over three years.

According to the city on the 29th, this Education Development Special Zone was selected as one of 31 local governments (19 leading areas and 12 management areas) out of 40 local governments that applied as the Ministry of Education’s first pilot areas to prevent regional extinction through educational innovation.

Exterior view of Mokpo City Hall

Among them, Mokpo City was designated as a leading area and will undergo a pilot operation for three years, after which its official designation will be decided through evaluation. Unlike leading areas, management areas are subject to annual evaluations.

Following this selection, Mokpo City plans to establish a detailed implementation plan for the Education Development Special Zone in close cooperation with Jeollanam-do Province, the Provincial Office of Education, Muan County, Sinan County, and each Office of Education.

So far, Mokpo City has held public hearings on the ‘Muan Peninsula Education Development Special Zone’ jointly with the Offices of Education, Muan County, and Sinan County, and has worked towards designation through opinion gathering and practical consultations with local universities and specialized high schools.

Additionally, the jointly submitted plan includes a joint education development model for the Muan Peninsula, aiming to cultivate talent for regional development industries by establishing a collaborative education foundation and fostering experts specialized in Mokpo’s future strategic industries such as offshore wind power and marine tourism, with the goal of encouraging them to settle in the region.

Mayor Park Hong-ryul stated, “With this special zone selection, we will create an education development special zone led by the region, where talented individuals who receive quality education locally contribute to regional development and build a virtuous cycle that attracts young people to a greater Mokpo. We will do our best to become the most exemplary pilot area nationwide.”