Gyeongnam and Jeonnam-Gwangju, the two pillars of Korea's aerospace industry, are moving to enact a "Special Law on Building an Aerospace Complex City" through bipartisan cooperation. South Gyeongsang Province said Wednesday that it will hold a forum at the National Assembly on the 15th, together with the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City, Sacheon City and Goheung County.
The forum is co-hosted by Rep. Seo Cheon-ho (People Power Party, representing Sacheon-Namhae-Hadong in Gyeongnam) and Rep. Moon Geum-ju (Democratic Party of Korea, representing Goheung-Boseong-Jangheung-Gangjin). It is significant in that the ruling and opposition parties have come together to promote mutual development between the Yeongnam and Honam regions and to realize balanced national development.
Held under the theme "Yeongnam-Honam Aerospace Mutual Development Alliance, Enacting a Special Law on Building a K-Aerospace Complex City," the forum will focus on ways for Gyeongnam and Jeonnam-Gwangju, the hubs of the aerospace industry, to join forces.
At the core is the strategy to build a "South Coast Aerospace Industrial Belt." The plan is to connect Sacheon and Jinju in Gyeongnam, which host the Korea AeroSpace Administration and boast manufacturing and research infrastructure, with Goheung in Jeonnam, which holds a launch vehicle base centered on the Naro Space Center.
This is a follow-up measure to the mutual development agreement signed by South Gyeongsang and South Jeolla provinces in September last year. The plan is to create a comprehensive industrial, research and administrative hub in connection with the government's announced vision to build a South Coast Aerospace Industrial Belt.
Presentations and discussions on the day will raise the need to systematically build, at the national level, a complex city that integrates industry, research and development, education and residential functions. The aim is to attract global companies and draw in top talent. There are also voices arguing that enacting a special law guaranteeing state-led financial support and regulatory exceptions is urgent, given that the capacity of local governments alone has limits in building large-scale infrastructure.
Gyeongnam and Jeonnam-Gwangju plan to use the forum as an opportunity to solidify the Yeongnam-Honam aerospace mutual development alliance and to spread policy consensus until the special law passes a plenary session of the National Assembly.
