All Provincial Governors Gathered in One Place... "Cooperation to Address Population Decline and Regional Balanced Development"

Policy Conference for Provincial Governors Held on the 10th

For the first time, governors from across the country gathered in one place to discuss the crises facing the Republic of Korea and their solutions. The governors jointly declared their commitment to fully address issues such as population extinction and preventing the outflow of young people.

The Korea Association of Governors held the '2024 Governors Policy Conference' in Seoul on the 10th. This conference was benchmarked after the annual meeting of the U.S. National Governors Association (NGA) and was planned for the first time since the association's establishment.

The 12 governors of South Korea's cities and provinces issued a joint declaration at the '2024 Governors Policy Conference' held on the 10th at the Four Seasons Hotel in Seoul. Photo by Korea Association of Governors of Cities and Provinces

At the conference, 12 governors attended and presented on various topics, including Park Hyung-jun, Mayor of Busan Metropolitan City and chairman of the association; Kim Tae-heum, Governor of Chungnam Province (Vice Chairman); Kim Kwan-young, Governor of Jeonbuk Special Self-Governing Province (Vice Chairman); Kim Du-gyeom, Mayor of Ulsan (Auditor); as well as Oh Se-hoon, Mayor of Seoul; Kim Young-hwan, Governor of Chungbuk; Kang Ki-jung, Mayor of Gwangju; Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk; Park Wan-soo, Governor of Gyeongnam; Lee Jang-woo, Mayor of Daejeon; Kim Young-rok, Governor of Jeonnam; and Oh Young-hoon, Governor of Jeju.

In his opening remarks, Park Hyung-jun, Mayor of Busan and chairman of the association, stated, "The answer to solving various problems such as economic and social disparities between regions caused by concentration in the metropolitan area lies in the regions themselves." He added, "I hope this gathering will be a new first step toward local autonomy and balanced regional development, and I look forward to it becoming an important platform for strengthening policy cooperation between the central and local governments, just like the National Governors Association in the United States."

Additionally, the association announced the 'Joint Declaration of Governors Nationwide for a Sustainable Future of the Republic of Korea' on the same day. All 17 governors from across the country signed the declaration. The association pointed out that "the regional economic contraction and the crisis of local extinction caused by the outflow of young people are intensifying." Accordingly, they resolved to work hard on ▲ responding to population extinction and youth outflow ▲ revitalizing the regional economy and balanced development ▲ strengthening local autonomy and cooperation between central and local governments.