Meeting calls for challenge-friendly environment and measures to ease innovation bottlenecks

The Ministry of Planning and Budget and the Mid- to Long-Term Strategy Committee met to discuss medium- and long-term policy directions on future technology and industrial innovation, economic security and supply chains.

The ministry said Thursday it held the sixth meeting of its Innovation Growth subcommittee.

The Ministry of Planning and Budget sign at the Government Sejong Complex. [Yonhap]
The Ministry of Planning and Budget sign at the Government Sejong Complex. [Yonhap]

The meeting brought together researchers from a public-private partnership studying national development strategy. Discussions focused on medium- and long-term policy directions for technology and industrial innovation, economic security and supply chains.

On technology and industrial innovation, participants discussed ways to build a society that embraces risk-taking and measures to ease bottlenecks holding back innovation.

Kwon Oh-hyun, chairman of the Mid- to Long-Term Strategy Committee, said that while equity among stakeholders matters, "performance-oriented resource allocation through selectivity and concentration — rather than uniform support — is necessary for technology and industrial advancement."

Hwang Kyung-min, chief executive of Vpix Medical, said that to build a society that respects challenge, people who bear a heavy burden of failure also need a certain level of safety net, and young people in particular need sufficient real opportunities to take on challenges.

Lee Jang-hyuk, a professor at Korea University's business school, said corporate support policies must differentiate between established companies that have already grown under existing systems and emerging firms on the rise. He added that startup support strategies should be designed with global competitiveness in mind.

Koo Ja-hyun, a research director at the Korea Development Institute, said regulations and policy support that persist out of habit — despite changing circumstances — are acting as bottlenecks to innovation. He called for institutional redesign suited to the spirit of the new era.

On economic security and supply chains, participants raised the view that South Korea needs to play a role as a key partner in shaping international norms and standards.

The ministry said attendees agreed on the need to develop a mid- to long-term national development strategy that allows ordinary citizens — including younger generations — to feel the tangible impact of future changes on their daily lives.


y2k@heraldcorp.com