South Korean President stresses balanced regional development as key to sustainable growth

Seoul, Dec 8 South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said Monday that balanced regional development is essential to South Korea's sustainable growth, pledging to pursue customized strategies that foster new growth engines across the nation.

Lee made the remarks during a policy briefing by the Presidential Committee for Decentralization and Balanced Development at the presidential office.

"Strengthening decentralization, balanced development and local autonomy has become an unavoidable national survival strategy for the Republic of Korea's sustainable growth," he said, Yonhap News Agency reported.

He noted that the government's past practice of channeling resources into the Seoul metropolitan area has reached its limit, underscoring the need for region-specific strategies to cultivate new growth engines.

"The growth strategy centered on the metropolitan area delivered significant achievements in the past, but the excessive concentration in the capital region has reached a point where it is undermining the nation's growth potential," he said.

During the briefing, the committee outlined plans to implement a customized development strategy for five regional hubs -- the Seoul metropolitan, southeast, northeast, central and western regions -- as well as three special self-governing provinces: Jeju, Gangwon and North Jeolla.

Monday's session comes ahead of a series of policy briefings Lee is scheduled to receive from ministries and public institutions, beginning with the Ministry of Economy and Finance on Thursday.

On December 5, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung highlighted the need for balanced regional development as a "survival strategy" for South Korea, saying development concentrated in the capital has undermined broader national growth.

Lee made the remarks during a town hall meeting in Cheonan, 90 kilometers south of Seoul, noting the importance of regional hubs for growth and development.

"Balanced regional growth is important as a strategy for survival for the Republic of Korea," Lee said, using South Korea's official name. "Concentration in the broader capital area has become a factor in severely undermining national growth and development."

"If concentration in the capital deepens, it will become impossible not only for growth and development, but also maintaining the status quo."

Lee also voiced frustration at high housing prices in the capital and nearby areas, blaming structural problems that cannot be easily resolved with policy measures.

He called for continued efforts to swiftly relocate government agencies to regions outside the capital and building an administrative capital.

Lee blamed political conflicts of interest as a major obstacle in regional development, floating the idea of integration efforts between South Chungcheong Province and the central city of Daejeon.

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