The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries' budget proposal for next year has surpassed 7 trillion won for the first time. The budget grew significantly as new projects such as pioneering the Arctic route and creating a maritime capital area expanded.
According to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF) on the 3rd, next year's budget is 7.3566 trillion won, up 8.5% from this year's 6.7816 trillion won.
The main driver of the MOF's budget increase is the Arctic route pioneering project, a key pledge of the Lee Jae-myung administration. The related budget is 550 billion won, up 23.4% from this year. The budget for ports and infrastructure to create a "Busan maritime capital area" also reaches 1.66 trillion won.
The flagship project is building one icebreaking research vessel for the Arctic. Next year's budget is 61.1 billion won, up 673% from 7.9 billion won this year. In addition, seven new projects have been newly arranged, including ▲support for building icebreaking and ice-strengthened ships ▲training polar maritime officers ▲establishing a "triport" strategy for ports, airports, and railways.
The budget for the MOF's transfer to Busan to respond to the Arctic route is set at 32.2 billion won. It will be used for office lease fees, maintenance costs, and improving residential conditions for staff. The budget for constructing a new government building is not included.
Meanwhile, during the National Assembly's deliberations, the MOF budget increased by 27.9 billion won from the government proposal. Funding was increased for AI fully autonomous ship R&D (6.3 billion won), development of regional hub ports (5.5 billion won), a program to reduce coastal and offshore fishing vessels (7 billion won), and a marine waste cleanup project (4.1 billion won).