Yeongnam region SMEs urge parliamentary passage of KDB’s Busan relocation plan

[Courtesy of Busan Chamber of Commerce & Industry]

Small and mid-size companies in South Korea’s Yeongnam region, including Busan, Ulsan, and Daegu, on Friday urged for the swift passage of a bill governing the relocation of the Korea Development Bank (KDB) headquarters to Busan.

“We call upon the National Assembly to pass the law for relocating the KDB to Busan, with the aim of alleviating any harm caused by the concentration in the capital region and promoting balanced national development,” according to a joint statement issued by the regional headquarter chairs of the Korea Federation of SMEs.

Citing that over half of the entire population is concentrated in the Seoul and surrounding areas, which account for only 11.8 percent of the country’s land by size, the statement said that this concentration “drains labor and capital out of other regions, resulting in a decline in the competitiveness of local industries and posing an existential threat to these regions.”

The statement further expressed disappointment at the persisting controversies over the relocation of the KDB to Busan, claiming that the relocation could serve as a “true driving force for regional development.”

It suggested that the relocation could generate production and value-added effects amounting to trillions of won in the southeastern region, create jobs, and boost the regional economy there.

“We urge the National Assembly to consider passing the relocation act during this term’s last regular session, as balanced regional development is of utmost importance for the nation’s future,” it said.