National budget secured tops 11 trillion won; investment attraction surpasses 37 trillion won

Kim Myeong-ju, economic deputy governor of South Gyeongsang Province, poses for a commemorative photo with senior civil servants at his retirement ceremony at the provincial government building Sunday. [South Gyeongsang Province]
Kim Myeong-ju, economic deputy governor of South Gyeongsang Province, poses for a commemorative photo with senior civil servants at his retirement ceremony at the provincial government building Sunday. [South Gyeongsang Province]

Kim Myeong-ju, economic deputy governor of South Gyeongsang Province, held a retirement ceremony Sunday at the provincial government building in Changwon, concluding a 30-year career in public service.

A native of Sancheong, South Gyeongsang Province, Kim served at the Ministry of Economy and Finance's budget office, the African Development Bank, the presidential office's civil society secretariat and the Shanghai Consulate General before taking office as the fourth economic deputy governor of South Gyeongsang Province on Feb. 28, 2024.

During his tenure, Kim helped usher in an era of 11 trillion won ($7.12 billion) in secured national budget funding and led the attraction of a cumulative 37.3 trillion won in investment under the eighth elected provincial administration. He is credited with supporting the launch of the Korea AeroSpace Administration and securing exemptions from preliminary feasibility reviews for a manufacturing physical AI development and demonstration project and a small modular reactor innovative manufacturing technology development project, moves seen as bolstering the region's new growth engines.

In his farewell remarks, Kim said his time working alongside staff as economic deputy governor had been the most rewarding of his career. "Budget and policy are ultimately battles of logic," he said, "so you must build a solid argument and find your answers on the field."

The ceremony featured the presentation of appreciation plaques by administrative Deputy Governor Park Il-ung and the head of the labor union, as well as a commemorative plaque presented by the head of the planning and coordination office.


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