Chungnam Provincial Government and Small and Medium Business Ombudsman Sign Regulatory Innovation Agreement

Kim Taeheum and the Small and Medium Business Ombudsman Sign Agreement
for Regulatory Innovation to Support Local Businesses

Chungnam Provincial Government Building. /Yonhap

Chungnam Provincial Government and the Small and Medium Business Ombudsman signed a "Business Agreement for Sustainable SME Regulatory Innovation" at the provincial government situation room on June 10.

The agreement includes: ▲ joint promotion of regulatory innovation, ▲ establishment and operation of a cooperative system for regulatory improvement, ▲ sharing and investigation of regulatory information and cases, and ▲ cooperation in promotional activities.

Choi Seungjae, the Small and Medium Business Ombudsman, explained, "During the past two years of efforts to improve local regulations that SMEs actually feel, Chungnam Province improved a total of 229 regulations across five areas, including the Shared Property Ordinance and the Building Ordinance, achieving the third-highest regulatory improvement performance (Chungnam 54%, national average for metropolitan governments 47%) among the 17 metropolitan governments nationwide."

He continued, "Bold regulatory innovation is necessary for companies to gather and grow in the process of promoting strategic industries such as the creation of Bay Valley and carbon neutrality and energy transition. We will work closely with Chungnam Province to deliver tangible regulatory improvement results that will strengthen the competitiveness of Chungnam's businesses."

He also added, "As a first step, we plan to hold a joint meeting with the province in the near future to address current regulatory issues such as easing the criteria for designating alleyway-type shopping districts, which is also related to the new government’s policy tasks such as expanding the issuance of Onnuri gift certificates and increasing the number of affiliated stores."

Governor Kim Taeheum stated, "There is a saying, 'Even a good law, if it lasts too long, will cause harm.' Once a regulation is established, it often remains unchanged over time and inevitably hinders businesses. Therefore, through close cooperation such as joint meetings, we will identify outdated regulations and work together to make Chungnam a better place to do business."

Chungnam Province is pursuing a policy direction focused on shortening or simplifying the permitting process for industrial complexes and construction, including the implementation of a one-stop permitting service to reduce the review period for landscape, architecture, and transportation, and improving the unreasonable central investment review system for projects fully funded by local governments, while seeking practical support measures.