Living Population Ratio 4th in Gyeongnam
Revisit Rate 3rd in Gyeongnam 'Confidence'
"We will focus more on the living population than the resident registration population in implementing population policies."
On the 5th, Oh Tae-wan, the mayor of Uiryeong-gun, Gyeongnam, made this statement at the regular assembly.
Mayor Oh said, "With the success of the Rich Rich Festival, the opening of the Future Education Center, and the establishment of youth policies, indicators related to the living population are outstanding in Gyeongnam. We will make Uiryeong a place where 2.5 million people?100 times the registered resident population of 25,000?visit, work, and live every year."
According to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and Statistics Korea's calculation of the living population for the second quarter of this year, Uiryeong's living population recorded 166,165 as of May. This is 5.1 times higher than the resident registration population and ranks fourth among the 11 cities and counties in Gyeongnam classified as 'population decline areas.' It also ranks third in urban revisit rate.
The living population is calculated using data such as mobile communication and credit card usage and has recently emerged as an important indicator for evaluating urban vitality and sustainability. Since 2020, Uiryeong-gun has maintained a living population about 2,000 higher than the resident registration population, but the living population has significantly increased since last year.
The county analyzes that the success of the Rich Rich Festival, which attracted the highest number of tourists in the history of Uiryeong festivals at every event, is the 'main contributor' to this dramatic turnaround in the living population.
Additionally, the living population of those under 20 years old (21,509) is about 10 times the registered population (2,149), which is evaluated as a significant effect of the 'Gyeongnam Future Education Center.'
Regular Inspection Rich Rich Festival Commendation for Meritorious Residents. [Image provided by Uiryeong-gun]
At the regular assembly, Mayor Oh said, "Although we will also strive to increase the settled population, as we ranked first in total fertility rate, it is unreasonable to set future population goals at 50,000 or 100,000 in a situation where the population decreases by more than 300 people annually. Let's carefully analyze the 'living population' who visit, stay, and are active in Uiryeong and rewrite population policies accordingly." He also declared that by next year, they will attract more than 200,000 living population monthly and open the era of 2.5 million living population by 2025.
To attract the living population, Uiryeong-gun plans to issue a provisional 'Uiryeong Love Citizen Card' to people who frequently visit Uiryeong, providing them with the same administrative and financial support as Uiryeong residents.
Furthermore, the plan includes early commencement of the four-lane expansion project for the National Road 20 section between Uiryeong and Jeonggok, extension of the north-south axis of the national road network, and construction of Uiryeong IC to expand a well-connected transportation network. This will greatly improve accessibility by leveraging the geographical advantage of being at the center of Gyeongnam.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
