Attempt to Move Beyond Daejeon-Centered Structure
Eight Cities and Counties Expected to Secure Independence in Industrial Policy and Business Support System
The southern region of Chungnam is expected to restructure its overall industrial policy, business support, and investment strategy around Chungnam by requesting the establishment of a separate chamber of commerce, moving away from the existing Daejeon-centered economic support system.
According to coverage by The Asia Business Daily on December 5, eight cities and counties in southern Chungnam-Gongju, Boryeong, Nonsan, Gyeryong, Geumsan, Buyeo, Seocheon, and Cheongyang-submitted a request for approval to establish an independent chamber of commerce to the Daejeon Chamber of Commerce and Industry on December 4. The proposal will be presented as an agenda item at the regular general assembly scheduled for February next year.
Although the southern region of Chungnam is administratively part of Chungnam Province, its economic support system has been under the jurisdiction of the Daejeon Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
As a result, there have been repeated instances of support that do not align with the region’s industrial structure, making it difficult to implement tailored policies for region-based industries such as agriculture and livestock, marine industries, traditional manufacturing, and tourism.
If the chamber of commerce split is approved, the southern region will be able to establish an organizational foundation to design its own industrial policies through an independent chamber of commerce. In the mid- to long-term, this is expected to organically link Chungnam Provincial Government’s economic policies with the local business support system.
In particular, Chungnam Province has recently been actively promoting projects focused on the southern region, such as the agro-bio industry, marine food clusters, tourism and cultural industries, and smart farm complexes.
Once the chamber of commerce is established, it will be able to directly carry out business consulting, industrial analysis, workforce development, and investment attraction functions connected to these projects on site, which is expected to significantly improve the efficiency of policy implementation.
There have been criticisms that the Daejeon Chamber of Commerce and Industry has mainly provided education, consulting, and market support based on Daejeon’s urban industrial structure, leaving specialized fields in the southern region of Chungnam-such as agri-food, marine and port industries, and tourism-relatively neglected.
In response, the Chamber of Commerce Establishment Promotion Committee officially launched in March, developed a roadmap for establishment, conducted legal reviews, designed the organization, collected feedback from businesses, held a vision declaration ceremony in November, and engaged in working-level discussions with the Daejeon Chamber of Commerce and Industry this month.
Kim Jungyun, chairperson of the Establishment Promotion Committee, stated, “The Chungnam Southern Chamber of Commerce and Industry will not simply be a new organization, but a strong partner that will support and work together for the growth and development of businesses in the eight cities and counties of southern Chungnam. We will open the first year of regional economic independence together.”
The local business community views the regular general assembly of the Daejeon Chamber of Commerce and Industry in February next year as the first gateway to restructuring the southern Chungnam economic sphere. There is growing attention on whether, depending on the approval of the split, the southern region of Chungnam will be able to break away from the Daejeon-centered system and transition to an independent, Chungnam-led economic policy framework.
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