Gwangju City Announces Call for Operators for Advanced Regenerative Medicine Regulatory Special Zone Project

From the 14th to the 31st... Targeting Companies, Institutions, and Hospitals

Gwangju City Hall building exterior.

Gwangju City announced on the 14th that it is recruiting companies, institutions, and hospitals to participate in the advanced regenerative medicine demonstration project. This follows last month's selection of the city as a candidate special zone for the 'Advanced Regenerative Medicine Regulatory Free Zone for the Advancement of the Biomedical Industry.' The recruitment period is from the 14th to the 31st of this month.

Participants in the demonstration project must have business sites related to advanced regenerative medicine in Korea, and if designated as a special zone, they must relocate or establish new business sites (branches, offices, factories, etc.) within the special zone.

The city plans to develop a 900,000-pyeong area including Dong-gu University Hospital area, Seo-gu hospital-dense area, Nam-gu Bitgoeul Jeonnam National University Hospital, and Buk-gu Advanced Science Industrial Complex as the advanced regenerative medicine special zone. Once finally designated as a special zone, regulatory exemptions will be applied for four years starting in 2026 to conduct demonstrations.

Jeonnam National University Hospital, the project’s lead institution, will establish and operate a regional review committee and safety management organization, expanding patient treatment rights through demonstrations of procedures proven safe overseas. It will also create an advanced regenerative medicine demonstration R&D ecosystem by integrating with the region’s key biomedical industry. In particular, it plans to support R&D and demonstrations of cell therapy, tissue engineering therapy, convergence therapy, and exosome therapy, which have high patient demand but relatively low risk.

Kim Yong-seung, Director of the Artificial Intelligence Industry Office of Gwangju City, said, “Gwangju’s excellent biomedical industry will further strengthen its competitiveness in the global market,” and added, “We hope for the interest and participation of many companies, institutions, and hospitals nationwide related to advanced regenerative medicine.”