“Pan-regional cooperation is the key to a balanced national development policy that will markedly change the lives of residents. Cooperation is beginning in three major metropolitan areas and small-yet-strong regions as well as in Busan, Ulsan and Gyeongsangnam-do Province, where a special-purpose local government will launch soon in February,” said President Moon Jae-in.
Presiding over the 1st Central and Local Government Cooperation Meeting convened in Cheong Wa Dae on Jan. 13, 2022, President Moon said, “Most of all, we should concentrate our capabilities on revitalizing local areas. Local economies are the backbone of the national economy. I ask you to actively discuss ways to revive local spending, including swiftly providing support for microbusiness owners. Measures to respond to mid- to long-term structural changes should also be devised and examined in advance.”
The Central and Local Government Cooperation Meeting is a new way to conduct state affairs. Local and central governments will closely consult with each other and make decisions about major locality-related administrative issues. The quarterly meetings will become the chief decision-making apparatus to deal with regional agenda items.
President Moon stresses, “We must make pan-regional cooperation a success in order to prove that it is an effective alternative to balanced national development. In this way, we have to ensure that a new model of regional development can spread throughout the country. I would like you to candidly present your opinions on what kind of support the Central Government has to provide and how to improve related systems.”
