KTO Signs Business Agreement with Gapyeong and Muju Counties for BETTERRI Project

The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) announced on May 13 that it had signed a business agreement with Gapyeong County in Gyeonggi Province and Muju County in North Jeolla Province at the KTO Seoul Center to promote the "BETTERRI (Battery)" project, which aims to boost tourism populations in areas experiencing population decline.

The Battery project was established to revitalize regions with declining populations by applying ideas from tourism venture companies and related startups. Introduced in 2023, the project has selected Gapyeong County and Muju County as its target areas for this year. Fourteen companies have also been chosen to participate in the Battery project, where they will demonstrate ideas tailored to the characteristics of Gapyeong and Muju.

The KTO will provide each selected company with 40 million won in commercialization funding and offer business model consulting from professional startup incubators, as well as support for promotional marketing. The KTO and local governments will cooperate at every stage, from helping participating companies settle in the region to project operation and the dissemination of results.

Gapyeong County boasts excellent accessibility to Seoul and a variety of tourism resources, including beautiful natural scenery. Participating companies include DearMonday and StreamingHouse, which will operate premium workation programs linked to local hub offices and accommodations. Mooncademy will develop running-based travel content. Banryeosaenghwal will introduce water activity and accommodation packages for travelers with pets, while Hansu Corporation plans to run the "StayGapyeong" project focused on local experience content.

In Muju County, companies capable of maximizing the synergy between natural resources such as fireflies and nighttime tourism will participate. Farmers F&S will operate "Sansanhan Haru," a program combining backpacking and local festivals. Sangolnangman will develop "Romance Mong, Muju," an experience program capturing the sentiment of Muju. Nature will offer outdoor content for hikers and campers, and Saturday Engineering will demonstrate a designer workation program.

Jongryn Mo, a professor at Yonsei University and author of "Alleyway Capitalism," will serve as an advisor for this year's Battery project. Professor Mo commented, "The power to revitalize a region comes from its unique ways and local identity," adding, "The Battery project is a local laboratory that demonstrates how changes starting in villages can lead to travel experiences people want to revisit, and it is a new attempt to create places where people want to stay."

Kwon Jongsul, head of the Tourism Enterprise Support Division at the KTO, stated, "The goal of the Battery project is for the ideas of tourism ventures to take root in local areas and drive real change," and added, "We will actively support the project so that it can have a positive impact on both the regions and the participating companies."