Vice Governor Kim Myeong-ju pushes for manufacturing AI, aerospace and SMR funding; Geoje-Tongyeong expressway and Southern Inland Railway also on the agenda

Vice Governor for Economic Affairs Kim Myeong-ju (left) explains the importance of key regional projects to Ministry of Planning and Budget Director General Cho Yong-beom and requests active budget support. [South Gyeongsang Province]
Vice Governor for Economic Affairs Kim Myeong-ju (left) explains the importance of key regional projects to Ministry of Planning and Budget Director General Cho Yong-beom and requests active budget support. [South Gyeongsang Province]

South Gyeongsang Province has moved proactively to secure national funding ahead of the government's budget drafting for next year, aiming to have its key regional priorities reflected in the final budget proposal in line with the central government's push to restructure spending.

The province said Vice Governor for Economic Affairs Kim Myeong-ju led senior civil servants on a visit to the Ministry of Planning and Budget on Thursday to make the case for major regional projects and request robust financial support. The visit was timed to coincide with the ministry's full-scale budget review process, which is based on budget requests submitted by individual ministries.

The province focused its pitch on advanced industries it sees as future growth engines. Key projects it urged the ministry to fund include the establishment of a manufacturing AI robotics valley, the construction of a physical AI demonstration test field for the shipbuilding and marine sector, a technology development and demonstration project to localize functional materials for aerospace applications, and the building of a support center for testing and inspecting small modular reactor (SMR) manufacturing components. The province said the initiatives are intended to accelerate the digital transformation of its mainstay manufacturing and shipbuilding industries while laying the groundwork to lead in next-generation strategic sectors such as aerospace and energy.

Expanding the regional transport network to strengthen logistics competitiveness and improve access to the South Sea coast was also on the agenda. The province called for the swift construction of the Geoje-Tongyeong expressway and the Southern Inland Railway (Gimcheon-Geoje). It also urged inclusion in the Fifth National Railway Network Development Plan, approval of a preliminary feasibility study for a southeastern circular metropolitan railway, and batch preliminary feasibility approval under the Sixth National Highway and Local Road Construction Plan.

Welfare and public health projects with a direct impact on residents' daily lives were also included in the requests. The province outlined the need for budget support to scale up the Eastern South Gyeongsang senior protection agency, fund operations at a public children's rehabilitation hospital serving the South Gyeongsang region, and relocate and rebuild the Changwon Red Cross Hospital to strengthen the public healthcare network. It also explained the need to fund disaster prevention work, including sewage system improvements in the flood-prone Suyang district of Geoje.

"The issues we raised today are projects that are absolutely essential for securing South Gyeongsang's future and keeping residents safe," Kim said. "We will maintain close communication with the Ministry of Planning and Budget and spare no effort on all fronts until the very end to ensure they are reflected in the government's budget proposal to the greatest extent possible."


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