Ministry of SMEs and Startups Holds 'Regional Startup Revitalization Townhall Meeting'

Discussion on Measures to Revitalize Regional Innovative Startups with Local Startup Support Organizations
and Others

On the 12th, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced that it held a 'Regional Startup Revitalization Town Hall Meeting' at the Pangyo Startup Zone, attended by employees of the 19 Creative Economy Innovation Centers (CEICs) nationwide, which are regional startup-dedicated institutions, and the Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development.

The event was an opportunity to discuss the achievements and future tasks of regional startup revitalization by the CEICs, which are regional startup-dedicated institutions. Participants proposed ideas for regional startup revitalization based on field experience and broadly shared various opinions.

Five centers presented field support cases for regional startups in areas such as global expansion, open innovation, and regional specialization. In the subsequent general discussion, various measures to revitalize regional startups were discussed, including fostering youth startups through collaboration with local governments, plans for overseas re-entry with foreign master's and doctoral-level talents at regional hub universities, and policy issues related to expanding regional investment.

Minister Oh Young-joo emphasized, “Expanding regional startups is a key policy agenda in terms of responding to regional extinction and revitalizing the regional economy,” adding, “We will actively review and reflect the opinions of regional startups and startup support organizations working in the regions and announce a strategy for developing the regional startup ecosystem in the second half of the year.”