Icheon Mayor Kim Gyeong-hee Holds 'Second Session Han River Love Forum' Launch Ceremony

[Suwon Ilbo=Eom In-yong Reporter] Icheon City held the 'Second Session Han River Love Forum Launch Ceremony' in the main conference room of City Hall on the 26th.

The 'Second Session Han River Love Forum' was established with the goal of promoting mutual cooperation and sustainable development in the capital region, pursuing mutual prosperity and joint development through rational improvement of capital region regulations, and seeking ways to systematically manage water quality in the Han River watershed.

The forum was attended by Han River Love Forum co-chairs National Assembly Member Song Seok-jun (Icheon City), Icheon Mayor Kim Gyeong-hee, Yongin Mayor Lee Sang-il, Hanam Mayor Lee Hyun-jae, Uiwang Mayor Kim Sung-je, Yangpyeong County Commissioner Jeon Jin-seon, Gapyeong County Commissioner Seo Tae-won, Vice Mayor of Gwangju Kim Chung-beom, Vice Mayor of Yeoju Cho Jung-a, Special Cooperation Operations Headquarters Director Kang Cheon-shim and Co-Chairman Shin Yong-baek, and other Han River Love Forum members.

Also in attendance were Icheon City Council Speaker Park Myeong-seo, Gyeonggi Province Assembly Member and Construction and Transportation Committee Chair Heo Won, as well as numerous city council members from Icheon, Yongin, Gwangju, and Yeoju cities, who raised the difficulties residents face due to overlapping capital region regulations, expressed local residents' aspirations and determination for rational improvement of location restrictions to revitalize the regional economy, and presented various opinions on regulatory improvement.

This 'Han River Love Forum' with the theme of 'Rational Improvement of Capital Region Regulations' emphasized that rational improvement of capital region regulations is necessary for mutual development between the capital and non-capital regions, as excessive growth-restraint regulations under the Capital Region Adjustment Planning Act hinder industrial and infrastructure development in the capital region while failing to achieve the original goal of balanced national territorial development.

In particular, at the forum, a resolution was adopted for rational improvement of capital region regulations, and participants agreed that excessive capital region regulations are restricting corporate investment and innovation-driven growth, while decreasing inflow of foreign capital and weakening national competitiveness, and stressed that capital region regulations must be rationally improved in line with global changes and innovation to strengthen competitiveness and promote balanced development across the nation.

Accordingly, participants renewed their commitment to cooperate and communicate with each other and respond jointly.

The meeting proceeded with a presentation by Dr. Yu Hyun-a of the Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements on 'Rational Improvement of Capital Region Regulations,' followed by a free discussion among Han River Love Forum members and participants.

Dr. Yu Hyun-a, who gave the presentation, explained the background of the introduction of capital region regulations and presented the necessity for rational improvement of capital region regulations.

Additionally, she emphasized the need to ease overlapping regulations in natural conservation areas and move away from uniform regulations based on administrative divisions to adopt differential management according to regional differences such as proximity to the Han River system and major transportation axes.

Icheon Mayor Kim Gyeong-hee stated, "While the government has achieved many regulatory innovation results over the past two years through the Prime Minister's Regulatory Innovation Promotion Team, economic activities and industrial development are restricted by capital region regulations, and many enterprises have lost opportunities for growth and innovation." She added, "In line with the times, it is necessary to transform the paradigm of capital region regulatory policy into policies that guarantee autonomy and economic efficiency, provide enterprises with flexible growth opportunities, and strengthen national competitiveness through sustainable development where environmental protection and economic development coexist."

Mayor Kim particularly noted, "Existing factories established or approved before the 'Capital Region Adjustment Plan' in 1984 have lost growth opportunities due to regulations," and added, "Even temporarily, regulations should be suspended to give enterprises opportunities to invest and expand facilities, and regulatory relief will help strengthen corporate international competitiveness and revitalize the regional economy."