Governor Kim Youngrok Presents "Grand Revival of Gwangju and Jeollanam-do" as New Year's Agenda

Bold Government Incentives... Promoting Integration with the Will of Citizens

Kim Youngrok, Governor of Jeollanam-do, held a year-end press conference for the eastern region of Jeollanam-do on the 24th at the lobby on the first floor of the Yi Sun-sin Auditorium in the East Government Building of Jeollanam-do Provincial Office, announcing the future development strategy for the eastern region of Jeollanam-do to open the next 100 years of the nation and the region. Provided by Jeollanam-do Province

On December 30, Kim Youngrok, Governor of Jeollanam-do, emphasized, "Let us thoroughly analyze the central government’s work reports to secure as many projects as possible, discover new provincial projects for 2026, and especially prepare for a new year in which Gwangju and Jeollanam-do will experience a grand revival in the era of AI and energy."

At the final policy meeting of the year with directors and department heads held that morning in the Seo Jae-pil Room at the provincial government building, Governor Kim stated, "As the government has promised bold incentives for integration, if conditions permit, we may move directly to a full-scale integration rather than a special autonomous province." He presented administrative integration for the grand revival of Gwangju and Jeollanam-do in the AI and energy era as the key agenda for the new year.

He continued, "In 2021, we commissioned a study on integration, but at that time, there was opposition from some occupational groups, and the central government had neither the will nor plans to provide incentives for integration, so the enthusiasm among citizens waned and it did not proceed. However, this time is different. With a special law expected to be enacted in early March, integration will allow us to secure much more, and the economic and political gap between integrated and non-integrated cities and provinces will widen. Therefore, let us move forward, reflecting the will of citizens to lead the future."

The main support measures for integrated local governments and special local autonomous entities, as outlined in the work reports by each ministry, include: granting status and organizational privileges equivalent to Seoul Metropolitan City; additional allocation of local allocation tax and consumption tax; priority consideration for relocating public institutions; gradual expansion of the size of metropolitan special accounts and autonomous special accounts; designation of 'growth engines' by region; and fostering the local power industry through the creation of advanced national industrial complexes, AI data centers, and RE100 initiatives.

Governor Kim remarked, "Gwangju and Jeollanam-do share the same roots, but over the past 40 years, artificial and administrative divisions have caused significant economic inconvenience. Jeollanam-do is rich in renewable energy, while Gwangju has abundant high-quality human resources and manpower. I hope the two regions will organically cooperate and make the coming year a bright one of joint development."

He also added, "Although time is tight, we already reached a certain degree of consensus through the 2021 study. If we quickly gather opinions from opinion leaders, citizens, and city and provincial councils of both regions based on this, we can overcome any obstacles."

He further instructed the prompt establishment of a Gwangju-Jeollanam-do Administrative Integration Planning Group, to review the procedures according to the previous study report, and to refer to relevant laws and other cases of integration among metropolitan governments.

He also called for the discovery of new work in the new year that citizens can truly feel.

Governor Kim stated, "The central government’s work reports became explosively popular, to the extent that the term 'Jamflix' was coined, as they addressed the public’s needs. Since the central government is pursuing many new and swift initiatives, let us analyze them thoroughly, turn them into Jeollanam-do policies, and secure as many projects as possible."

He added, "Let us also develop new work through internal discussions, so that citizens can experience and relate to the work we do."

In addition, he called for: attracting AX projects from each central ministry, including the fisheries sector; swift designation of preliminary candidate sites for the military airport and the establishment of relocation plans; thorough safety management and order maintenance at the sledding and skating rinks of the Jeonnam OK Citizen Plaza, which has returned to the citizens; and strict farm-level biosecurity to prevent the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza.