The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 25th that it will begin a competition for regional vitality towns and public-private partnership investment agreements to respond to the crisis of regional extinction and promote local revitalization in collaboration with eight central government ministries.
The regional vitality town project is an initiative to support settlement by providing housing, living infrastructure, and services to retirees, young people, and others looking to move to the countryside.
This competition expands the existing seven growth promotion areas to 120 cities and counties across seven provinces and increases the related support projects to 22. Selected regions will receive administrative and financial support, including national budget assistance and special licensing exceptions.
The public-private partnership investment agreement allows the private sector to plan and operate regional coexistence projects while the government supports facility development and other initiatives. The target areas are those experiencing population decline, leveraging private creativity and expertise to promote local revitalization. This year, active expansion of private participation will be encouraged through preliminary demand surveys, and five final project sites will be selected. The competition will commence accepting applications in March next year, with field evaluations and comprehensive assessments determining the final project sites in May.
Detailed information about the regional vitality towns and public-private partnership investment agreement competition can be found starting from the 26th on the Regional Development Information System (www.rdis.or.kr) and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's website (www.molit.go.kr).