Gyeonggi Province Governor and South Chungcheong Province Governor Exchange Positions

Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Moon-soo and South Chungcheong Province Governor Lee Wan-gu swapped roles on the 26th, serving as "one-day governors" at the South Chungcheong Provincial Government and Gyeonggi Provincial Government, respectively.

The exchange between the two governors followed a promise they made in July when they met in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province to broaden mutual understanding between the two provinces. They agreed to cross-visit at an appropriate time and deliver lectures on the future of both provinces, taking on the title of "one-day honorary governors."

Governor Kim arrived at the South Chungcheong Provincial Government in Daejeon at 8:50 a.m., approved the "Honorary Governor Operating Plan for South Chungcheong and Gyeonggi," and delivered a special lecture to provincial officials on the theme "Future Development Direction for Gyeonggi and South Chungcheong."

In his lecture, Governor Kim stated, "Gyeonggi Province and South Chungcheong Province are increasingly resembling each other in industrial structure and economic vitality centered around the Pyeongtaek and Dangjin ports, and they are leading the national economy. The two provinces should transcend administrative boundaries and work together for national development through a framework of mutual prosperity," he emphasized.

Governor Lee Wan-gu also arrived at the Gyeonggi Provincial Government in Suwon the same day, approved official documents, and delivered a special lecture with the theme "The Role of Local Civil Servants in the Era of Globalization."

Governor Lee stated, "By 2020, China will surpass Japan and the United States to become the world's largest economy, and our country, burdened with various regulations and a rapidly declining population, will soon fall behind China as well. Therefore, we must develop the national economy centered on the Yellow Sea Economic Free Zone, including Pyeongtaek and Hwaseong in Gyeonggi Province, and Asan and Dangjin in South Chungcheong Province," he emphasized.

After their lectures, the two governors held a tea time with administrative and political vice-governors and key department heads, received reports on major provincial affairs, and engaged in discussions.

The two governors then moved to Pyeongtaek, shared lunch together, and inspected the Pyeongtaek and Dangjin ports for approximately 40 minutes. They then received reports on mutual cooperation projects between the two regions and held discussions in the presence of senior officials from both areas.

The two governors adopted three items for submission to the national government that are of common concern to both regions: ▲Early designation of the Yellow Sea Economic Free Zone ▲Early construction of the West Coast Railway ▲Early promotion of port route expansion for Pyeongtaek and Dangjin ports.

Gyeonggi Province and South Chungcheong Province signed a "Mutual Development Agreement" in January of last year, agreeing that the capital region and non-capital region would present a new model for national development through mutual cooperation. In April, they jointly applied to the government for designation of the "Yellow Sea Economic Free Zone," to be established in the Asan Bay area spanning 20.61 million pyeong (approximately 68.3 million square meters).

The planned Yellow Sea Economic Free Zone encompasses approximately 7.93 million pyeong in Pyeongtaek (Poseung District) and Hwaseong (Hyangnam District) in Gyeonggi Province, and approximately 12.67 million pyeong in Seosan (Jigok District), Dangjin (Songak and Seokmun districts), and Asan (Inju District) in South Chungcheong Province. The two provinces plan to invest a total of 53.437 trillion won over two phases by 2025 to develop high-tech industrial production, international logistics, tourism, and research complexes.

Once designated as an economic free zone, the two provinces expect to achieve investment effects of 59.77 trillion won and job creation effects of approximately 321,000 positions.