Hwaseong-si Ahead of Special City Status, Policy Research Activities Also Top Tier

3rd Place at the 'Local Government Officials Policy Research Presentation Contest'
Achievements of the 'Gongjikja Policy Research Group' Accumulated Over 8 Years

Hwaseong City in Gyeonggi Province announced on the 3rd that it won 3rd place in the '2024 Local Government Officials Policy Research Presentation Contest' hosted by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Local Government Officials Development Institute.

Since its inception in 2005, this contest aims to discover excellent cases of institutional and policy improvements in local governments and to share the research achievements of local government officials. This year’s competition, divided into seven fields including general administration, social welfare, economy, urban planning, and transportation, selected 7 entries out of 22 that passed the content review. The final rankings were determined through public online voting and presentation evaluations.

Officials from Hwaseong City, who received the Minister of the Interior and Safety Award at this year's Local Government Officials Policy Research Presentation Contest, are taking a commemorative photo after the award ceremony. Photo by Hwaseong City

The city received the award for its project titled "Efficient Public Facility Management Plan." This project was highly evaluated for presenting a systematic management model that addresses the disparity of public facilities between regions within the city by categorizing them into neighborhood living zones accessible within a 10-minute walk, daily living zones accessible within 30 minutes, and regional living zones including large-scale facilities.

Inside and outside the city, this award is regarded as the result of research and collaboration by the 'Public Officials Policy Research Group,' which has been ongoing for the past eight years. Established in 2017, the Hwaseong City Public Officials Policy Research Group was created to cultivate public officials who learn and research independently every year and to foster an organizational culture that encourages voluntary cooperation and creativity. The group helps city employees design the future of the city based on their administrative experience and regional insights and enables proactive responses to changing environments.

In particular, this year, a two-track system was introduced to enhance research efficiency: the 'Creative Policy Research Group,' focusing on long-term and challenging tasks, and the 'Service Project Research Group,' which conducts advanced, practice-oriented research to increase execution capability. From April to September this year, 56 public officials in 12 teams autonomously formed research groups and selected research topics, with 11 projects being selected as outstanding research tasks.

Jung Myung-geun, Mayor of Hwaseong City, said, "The city’s Public Officials Policy Research Group has now become a central axis for organizational culture improvement and policy innovation beyond simple research," adding, "We will continue to strive to contribute to improving the quality of life for citizens through the research group."