Park Wan-su directs officials to set sector-by-sector goals at Monday morning meeting; highlights aerospace hub ambitions, Arctic shipping route plans

South Gyeongsang Province Governor Park Wan-su chairs a department heads' meeting at the provincial government building Monday morning, where he directed officials to draw up a concrete vision for the province's next decade. [South Gyeongsang Province]
South Gyeongsang Province Governor Park Wan-su chairs a department heads' meeting at the provincial government building Monday morning, where he directed officials to draw up a concrete vision for the province's next decade. [South Gyeongsang Province]

South Gyeongsang Province Governor Park Wan-su on Monday called on provincial officials to develop a concrete picture of what the province should look like in 10 years — one clear enough for residents to envision themselves.

Speaking at a department heads' meeting that morning at the provincial government building in Changwon, Park said a clear vision and goals for the future are what give rise to the effort and will needed to achieve them. He directed officials to define sector-by-sector visions and targets covering industry and the economy, road and transport infrastructure, welfare, and residents' quality of life — both for the current elected term and for the decade ahead.

Park then instructed the planning and coordination office to work with relevant departments and agencies to finalize a medium-to-long-term vision as quickly as possible. He called for concrete development directions across key sectors, including aerospace, port logistics and welfare.

On the 2026 Sacheon Air Show, set to open this week, Park said the event must evolve beyond its current focus on flight demonstrations and hands-on experiences into a global industry expo drawing domestic and international aerospace and defense companies. "Domestic and foreign companies must come to see South Gyeongsang Province as the center of South Korea's aerospace industry, leading to cooperation with local firms and new investment," he said.

Park added that the province must firmly establish the perception — at home and abroad — that companies seeking to do business in aerospace should head to Jinju and Sacheon. To that end, he called for a coordinated push to attract companies and research institutions, expand transport infrastructure including Sacheon Airport and rail links, build an industry support framework, and improve living conditions through the development of an aerospace complex city. He also urged continued efforts to expand the western South Gyeongsang free economic zone and secure designation as a mega special zone.

On welfare, Park highlighted the need for continuous improvement of the province's generative AI-based integrated welfare platform — the first of its kind built by a metropolitan local government in South Korea. "Under the current welfare system, residents must apply themselves to receive benefits, which means those who actually need support sometimes miss out," he said. "We must keep improving the relevant systems so that we can move toward automatic or ex officio applications."

On port logistics, Park called for concrete preparations to develop Jinhae New Port into a key hub for the emerging Arctic shipping route era, following a recent Arctic route trial voyage.


ook967@heraldcorp.com