The government is speeding up the second transfer of public institutions to the provinces. As more than 350 public institutions in the capital region and government-invested quasi-governmental organizations are being discussed as candidates for transfer, local governments are entering a full-fledged competition to attract them. As the government begins drawing up a roadmap to finalize the institutions and regions for transfer, movements are also being detected within public institutions to secure locations with good transportation networks and residential conditions.
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on the 6th, the government plans to proceed in earnest with the second transfer of public institutions to the provinces. The second transfer of public institutions is a state agenda of the Lee Jae-myung administration to foster bases for balanced growth.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) is preparing a roadmap for the second transfer of public institutions in line with Minister Kim Yun-duk's remark that "we will finalize the institutions and regions for transfer in 2026 and begin the transfer in 2027." Based on the results of the ongoing "execution support service for the second transfer of public institutions," the plan is to finalize the institutions to be transferred and the regions for transfer.
About 350 public institutions are being mentioned as transfer candidates. Korea Racing Authority (KRA), Korea Investment Corporation (KIC), Korea Airports Corporation (KAC), Korea District Heating Corporation (KDHC), the Bank of Korea, National Agricultural Cooperative Federation, National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives, and Industrial Bank of Korea are being floated as a shortlist. An official at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) said, "The institutions for the second transfer of public institutions have not yet been finalized," and added, "We will conduct review work to determine the target institutions and transfer regions."
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) has also begun reorganizing its structure. Within the Innovation City Development Promotion Team, which handles transfer tasks for public institutions, it created the Innovation City Development Division and the Innovation City Support Division. This is understood as a measure to strengthen functions in development, improvement of residential conditions, and cooperation with local governments ahead of the second transfer of public institutions.
Local governments' competition to attract institutions is heating up. With the June 3 local elections concluded and new local government lineups in place, there is an outlook that behind-the-scenes efforts to attract public institutions will become more active starting next month.
Each local government is highlighting locations with established transportation networks and living infrastructure. Daegu is putting forward the Dongdaegu Station area and downtown transfer candidate sites as bases for attracting public institutions. Busan is devising a plan to attract public institutions by linking the North Port redevelopment area with adjacent old downtowns. Daejeon, which has thrown its hat in the ring for designation as an innovation city, is naming the Urban Convergence Special Zone being created around Daejeon Station as a strategic site for the transfer of public institutions
The government plans to comprehensively weigh linkage with regional strategic industries, the ripple effects on the regional economy from the transfer, and residential conditions in deciding the transfer regions for each local government's desired attraction area. As President Lee Jae-myung said in March, "Let's concentrate the second transfer of public institutions as much as possible," and "The issue of national balanced development is a matter of national survival, so it is not a situation where we can scatter," analysis suggests that this transfer is likely to be promoted in a "selection and concentration" manner centered on key bases rather than balanced distribution by region.
This is also a direction to compensate for the limitations of the first transfer of public institutions. During the first transfer, 153 public institutions were distributed across 10 innovation cities nationwide. However, as many innovation cities were created on the outskirts of downtowns, their linkage with existing urban centers weakened, and issues such as insufficient education, medical, and cultural infrastructure were raised. For this reason, many assessments held that the transfer of public institutions fell short of expectations in leading to the creation of self-sufficient cities or the formation of industrial ecosystems.
Experts also point out that the second transfer should be pursued from the perspective of building industrial ecosystems, not simple regional allocation. Ma Kang-rae, a professor in the Department of Urban Planning and Real Estate at Chung-Ang University, said, "The second transfer of public institutions should be designed in a way that can create industrial ecosystems centered on regional bases," and added, "It is effective only when it is linked to specialized industrial resources that the region possesses, and it is also important to ensure it does not become isolated like an island by being connected with universities, research institutes, corporations, and local governments."
As the government shows a strong will for the second transfer of public institutions, internal circles of public institutions are also being stirred. According to a government official, some public institutions that may be included as transfer targets are conveying opposition to relocation to the provinces centered on labor unions, while there is also a mood that sees Sejong and Daejeon in the Chungcheong region as a realistic lower bound for transfer. Inside institutions, there are also voices saying, "If the transfer is inevitable anyway, we should secure places with good transportation and infrastructure."