Five Major Sectors Including Global Logistics Hub
Discovery of 26 Projects with a Total Budget of 15.1792 Trillion Won
Changwon Special City announced on April 30 that, ahead of the 21st presidential election scheduled for June, it will make every effort to have key municipal agenda items reflected as presidential campaign pledges and included in national policy tasks, with the goal of "Leap and Takeoff for the Next 50 Years."
The city stated that, in order to turn the early presidential election situation and this period of major transition into an opportunity, it has selected core agenda items through various channels, including meetings of department heads, consultations with the Changwon Municipal Policy Research Institute, and input from related organizations. The city has also proposed to each political party that these items be included in their candidates' regional pledges.
The key agenda items that Changwon Special City seeks to have reflected in campaign pledges cover five major sectors: industry and economy (9 items), port logistics and transportation (8 items), balanced development (4 items), urban affairs (2 items), and environment and energy (3 items), totaling 26 projects. The combined project budget amounts to 15.1792 trillion won.
Changwon is widely recognized as the hub of South Korea's defense industry and is a region of significant importance in strengthening national security and driving the golden era of K-Defense exports.
To maintain this momentum, the city plans to focus its efforts on quickly launching the Changwon Defense and Nuclear Fusion National Industrial Complex, which will serve as a core base for securing a super-gap competitive edge in the defense industry.
In connection with this, the city has outlined a vision to create a world-class manufacturing innovation ecosystem centered on the new industrial complex by clustering research infrastructure such as an advanced multi-beam irradiation facility and a defense parts research institute to generate synergy effects. The city also included in its pledge the consistent implementation of energy policies to ensure the sustainable transformation of the existing Changwon National Industrial Complex and to revitalize the nuclear power industry.
In addition, the city included as major projects the establishment of an AI autonomous manufacturing support center, the creation of a specialized drone manufacturing localization complex, the development of a digital Masan free trade zone, and the creation of an advanced materials demonstration research complex, all aimed at generating new growth engines for the Masan and Jinhae areas.
To maximize the economic ripple effects of the construction of Gadeokdo New Airport and Jinhae New Port, the city plans to proactively develop hinterland areas and establish an international logistics special zone based on a tri-port system integrating port, airport, and rail, preparing to become a world-class port logistics city.
At the same time, the city is focusing on establishing a rail network that will connect the Yeongnam region within 30 minutes, centered on Changwon. This includes promoting the construction of the Dongdaegu-Changwon-Gadeokdo New Airport high-speed rail, the Changwon-Daegu rail logistics network (Changwon Industrial Line), and proposing the early opening of the Bujeon-Masan double-track railway and the inclusion of Jungni Station stops, in order to complete a one-hour living zone throughout Busan and Gyeongnam.
To ensure that the special city fulfills its role as a hub for regional co-prosperity, the city is also focusing on the prompt enactment of a special law granting substantial administrative and fiscal authority, as well as on establishing flexible and reasonable criteria for the stable operation of special cities outside the Seoul metropolitan area. The city also requested the second phase relocation of public R&D institutions to strengthen regional competitiveness and alleviate the concentration in the Seoul metropolitan area.
Furthermore, the city plans to draw national attention and support for revitalizing the commercial district of Masan’s old downtown, where economic stagnation has deepened since the closure of Lotte Department Store last year.
The city will also pursue the restructuring of urban spaces that have been fragmented due to past regulations and usage methods. While proposing the complete lifting of the Changwon area’s development restriction zone, which continues to exist despite losing its original purpose and now limits urban development and residents’ rights, the city also requested that the national plan reflect a future blueprint for improving accessibility and connectivity to Masan Bay, which has been used solely as a national logistics base at the expense of its potential as a recreational area for citizens.
Major projects also include the creation of a Gyeongnam (Changwon) hydrogen-specialized complex and the selection of the city as a leading carbon-neutral city, both aimed at responding to the climate crisis and transitioning to a carbon-neutral society.
In addition, the city plans to pursue the designation of Gyeongnam (Changwon) as a distributed energy specialized area to supplement the limitations of the existing power supply system and to revitalize the local economy.
Jang Geumyong, Acting Mayor of Changwon Special City, stated, "Changwon is a symbolic city that has led the eras of industrialization and local autonomy, as well as national development and balanced regional growth. Changwon’s presidential pledges are not just issues for one city, but are strategic tasks to open a new future for Korea, including balanced national development, securing competitiveness in advanced strategic industries, and strengthening national security." He added, "We will deliver these pledges, which reflect the aspirations of one million Changwon citizens, to each political party and actively work to ensure they are reflected in policy."
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