The Busan Restoration Vision Proclamation Ceremony Takes Place with the Support of President Moon

The Busan Vision Proclamation Ceremony took place on Wednesday, February 13, 2019 at Daeho PNC, a closed-down factory in the Sasang industrial complex area, with the participation of about 450 people, including President Moon Jae-in, Busan Mayor Oh Keo-don, the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Minister of Oceans and Fisheries, businesspeople and various political leaders.

Busan Metropolitan City unveiled the ‘Busan Restoration Vision’ as the city of the future within the Republic of Korea, aiming to revitalize the regional economy and enhance the quality of life for citizens.

Daeho PNC was once a fully operated factory with over 100 employees as recently as five years ago. Busan selected the location as a symbol for its restoration vision to overcome the regional economic downturn.

President Moon visited Busan on one of his series of regional trips aimed at reviving regional economies. He expressed his full support for Busan’s restoration vision at the ceremony.

The City developed its restoration vision utilizing three strategic directions – Connection, Innovation and Balance to overcome a recession in the regional economy and the overall decline of the city.

Firstly, ‘Connection’: reconstruction of disconnected urban spaces

Busan is connected through land, sea and air.

Accordingly, the disconnected urban spaces due to the existence of rail lines needs to be connected by constructing an underground railroad for the Gyeongbu rail line connecting Busan and Seoul.

The city areas in decline due to the disconnection will be transformed into environmental-friendly green spaces and pleasant residential areas after the underground railroad project is completed. The reconstructed city space will be utilized to create jobs and businesses to revitalize the regional economy.

Secondly, ‘Innovation’: improvement of the city’s fundamental economic structure

The government picked Busan and Sejong as test beds for the realization of the nation’s smart city vision. Busan will become Korea’s first “smart city” by 2021.

The city plans to expand the smart city project citywide, including in the Sasang industrial complex, Centum City, North Port, Yeongdo and Munhyeon, as well as Echo Delta City in Gangseo-gu.

The smart urban regeneration projects will improve the quality of life for all citizens.

Thirdly, ‘Balance’: the promotion of a balanced national development strategy, but also the balanced development between regions

To accomplish the balanced development of West Busan, the original downtown of Busan, and East Busan along with a balanced national development strategy, highway construction from Busan New Port to Gimhae Expressway, construction of a Southeastern Gateway Airport, and an underground highway from Sasang to Haeundae with connections to the Namhae, Seohaean, Donghae expressways needs to be completed alongside the city project for an underground highway to be constructed between Mandeok and Centum.

Lastly, Busan’s Mayor Oh hopes to host the 2019 ASEAN-Republic of KOREA Commemorative Summit in Busan in a new era of peace on the Korean Peninsula. The city will be the best venue for the summit.

"Busan is the gateway to Korea with the best transportation systems, such as ports, airport, railroads and a logistics base, but I am concerned about the regional economic downturn and imbalance in the city," President Moon said at the ceremony. He promises to fully support the vision as much as possible. "The vitality of the Busan economy directly influences the vitality of the Korean economy, and I believe the success of that vision will be the cornerstone of this city's regional innovation," President Moon added.