64 residents review 113 projects worth 7.7 billion won

An exterior view of Busan City Hall [Busan city government]
An exterior view of Busan City Hall [Busan city government]

Busan city government held the general assembly of its 10th Participatory Budgeting Committee on Friday to select resident-proposed budget projects for 2027. The assembly, held that afternoon at Busan City Hotel, was attended by 64 committee members and 16 city officials.

The participatory budgeting system allows local residents to propose projects and take part directly in the budget-drafting process, serving as a mechanism for fiscal democracy.

At the assembly, the city conducted a final review of 113 participatory budgeting projects worth 7.7 billion won ($5.58 million) and said it would submit a residents' opinion report to the Busan City Council in November reflecting the results. The projects under review comprised 17 city governance participation projects worth 2.4 billion won, 66 community participation projects worth 3.6 billion won, and 30 community cooperative governance projects worth 1.7 billion won.

To select the 2027 participatory budgeting projects, the city carried out a multi-stage process: accepting resident proposals through March this year, conducting departmental reviews in April and May, holding district and county community meetings in June and July, and completing reviews by the committee's subcommittees and steering committee.

In a survey of 1,600 residents conducted from Aug. 3 to Friday to gauge public preferences among the proposed projects, the top picks in the city governance participation category were installation of crime-prevention CCTV, support for demolishing chimney structures at public bathhouses in Busan, and replacement of CCTV at the International Fisheries Distribution Facility Management Office.

In the community participation category, the selected projects were expansion of bus stop convenience infrastructure in Yeonje-gu, installation of safety alert bells around Deokseong Elementary School in Buk-gu, and installation of speed-display traffic facilities to improve pedestrian safety near Deokcheon Middle School in Buk-gu. In the community cooperative governance category, the picks were development of Seo-gu-specific wellness and healing content for local community benefit, road maintenance along Wonyang-ro in Seo-gu, and construction of a smart eco-friendly and safe public restroom near the Nakdong River in Hwamyeong, Buk-gu.


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