Minister of Culture and Minister of Industry Visit for the Creation of 'Changwon National Industrial Complex with Culture'

Mayor Hong Nampyo Introduces Changwon National Industrial Complex, Neulbom School, and Jinhae Gunhangje Festival in Detail to Ministry Delegation

To create a ‘Changwon National Industrial Complex with Culture,’ the Ministers of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Industry visited the Changwon National Industrial Complex and cultural and artistic sites.

Changwon Special City, Gyeongnam, announced on the 28th that to foster a ‘Changwon National Industrial Complex with Culture,’ Yoon In-chon, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Ahn Deok-geun, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, and Lee Sang-ju, Director General of the Land and Urban Office at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, visited the Changwon Complex Culture Center located within the Changwon National Industrial Complex.

(From the second on the left: Hong Nampyo, Mayor of Changwon; An Deokgeun, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy; Yoo Inchon, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism; Park Wansu, Governor of Gyeongsangnam-do)

This visit is interpreted as a follow-up measure to the public discussion held in Changwon on February 22, presided over by President Yoon Suk-yeol. At the discussion, President Yoon instructed to ‘make efforts centered on the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to create an industrial complex that attracts youth.’ Since then, the Ministries of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Industry, and Land, Infrastructure and Transport have formed a ‘Culture and Industrial Complex Convergence Task Force,’ with Changwon City also participating to discuss policy measures.

◆ On-site Visit to Changwon Complex Culture Center and Luncheon Meeting

The delegation first toured the cultural and artistic programs at the Changwon Complex Culture Center. The Changwon Complex Culture Center was originally the Dongnam Market built in 1982 and was remodeled in 2019 to be reborn as a representative cultural complex space in the region. Currently, cultural and artistic organizations such as Content Korea Lab, Webtoon Campus, and Brown Hands have moved in, establishing it as a leading complex cultural space representing Changwon.

After the site tour, Minister Yoon In-chon, Governor Park Wan-su, and Mayor Hong Nam-pyo shared a meal with Lee Sang-hoon, Chairman of the Industrial Complex Corporation; Jo Bo-hyun, Chairman of the Gyeongnam Federation of Artistic and Cultural Organizations; Kim Soon-ae, Chairman of the Masan Federation of Artistic and Cultural Organizations; Shin Ki-soo, CEO of Daegun Tech; and Baek Seung-yeon, researcher at Ire Industry. They discussed ways to develop Changwon’s culture and arts as well as cultural development in the industrial complex. In a warm and friendly atmosphere, Kim Soon-ae introduced the current status of culture and arts in the Changwon area and proposed ‘resolving the imbalance of cultural spaces by region in Changwon’ and ‘utilizing Masan Port’s 124-year history as a cultural tourism resource,’ which drew positive responses.

Hong Nampyo, Mayor of Changwon Special City, is giving an explanation.

After the luncheon meeting, Mayor Hong Nam-pyo and Second Deputy Mayor Jo Myung-rae accompanied Minister Yoon In-chon to visit cultural sites in Changwon. They observed ▲ the cultural and artistic program at HapSeong Elementary School Neulbom School and ▲ the Jinhae Gunhangje Festival site together, providing detailed introductions about the current status of Changwon’s culture and arts and the festival, which captured the attention of the visiting delegation and press corps.

◆ On-site Visit to HapSeong Elementary School Neulbom School Cultural and Artistic Program

Minister Yoon In-chon, along with Second Deputy Mayor Jo Myung-rae, observed the cultural and artistic program at HapSeong Elementary School Neulbom School. Neulbom School is a program for first-grade elementary students that provides two hours daily of free school adaptation, play-centered arts and physical education, and creativity and science programs. It is a flagship educational policy of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration.

◆ Visit to Jinhae Gunhangje Festival Selected for Local 100

The visiting party toured various sites of the Jinhae Gunhangje Festival. The Jinhae Gunhangje Festival was selected last year for the ‘Local 100’ project hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. ‘Local 100’ is a policy project by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism that selects and supports 100 representative tangible and intangible cultural resources such as local attractions, content, masters, and festivals.

Hong Nam-pyo, Mayor of Changwon Special City, said, “I am very pleased to introduce the high-quality cultural and artistic sites of Changwon and the Jinhae Gunhangje Festival, which was selected for Local 100, to the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism.” He added, “Spending the day with the Minister, we had in-depth discussions on the cultural gap between Seoul and local areas and the integration of culture and arts into aging industrial complexes. We will establish a strong cooperative system to create a cultural industrial complex that attracts youth,” expressing his commitment for the future.