Yangsan City Wins the 5th Korea Best Management Award

Grand Prize in the Job Creation Category... Three Consecutive Years Since 2022

Yangsan City in Gyeongnam received the Grand Prize in the job creation category at the '2024 5th Korea's Best Management Awards' hosted by Chosun Ilbo on the 16th at The Plaza Hotel in Seoul.

Na Dongyeon, mayor of Yangsan, who received the 5th Korea Best Management Award.

This marks the third consecutive year Yangsan City has won the grand prize, following awards in the cultural tourism city category of the autonomous administration sector in 2022 and the leadership through communication city category in 2023.

At the 2024 5th Korea's Best Management Awards ceremony, a total of 20 categories were recognized, including job creation, leadership, ESG, and creative administration.

Yangsan City received high praise in the job creation sector for: ▲ Establishing an innovative startup cluster that increases challenges and reduces failures ▲ Creating jobs through strategic investment attraction ▲ Setting up a higher vocational education hub to build a virtuous cycle system of education-employment-settlement.

In the first area of startups, Yangsan City established 'G-Space@East (Youth Startup Academy)' as a hub for innovative startups representing the eastern Gyeongnam region (with 19 resident companies, 10 companies supported for growth acceleration, 10 teams for accelerating, and 75 employees). Through the Early Startup Package Project, 30 startup companies were supported, achieving KRW 16.1 billion in sales, KRW 1 billion in investment attraction, and creating 122 jobs.

In addition, the city secured KRW 16 billion in national funding by confirming the construction of a 'Public Rental Knowledge Industry Center' to support the entire cycle of startup-growth-investment. The center is expected to induce employment for 420 people during the construction phase and 160 people during the operation phase.

Secondly, in the area of strategic investment attraction, Yangsan City established a foundation for investment and startup activation through the 'Regional Investment and Startup Cooperation Governance Agreement.' The city also fully revised the 'Yangsan City Ordinance and Rules on Corporate and Investment Attraction,' which included increasing support for corporate investment and land purchase, and expanding and reorganizing investor incentives. As a result, five companies attracted investments totaling KRW 219 billion, creating 131 new jobs.

Lastly, to respond to the decline in the school-age population and the intensifying labor shortage in local industries, the city built a government-industry-academia governance system and was selected for the 'Higher Vocational Education Hub (HIVE) Project.' Through this, four specialized local departments were reorganized (66 students admitted), and lifelong education programs for local residents were operated (38 programs, 609 graduates), fostering outstanding talent. Among the graduates of the lifelong education programs, 11 succeeded in finding employment.

Through these initiatives, the city has laid the foundation for a virtuous cycle system that connects education, employment, and settlement, thereby improving residents' quality of life through lifelong education.

Mayor Na Dongyeon said, "We will do our best to strengthen cooperation with the local community so that Yangsan City can move toward a better future, and strive to contribute to job creation and employment stability."