Cities race to host public institutions as relocation push heats up

The South Korean government's ambitious plan to relocate hundreds of public institutions away from the Seoul metropolitan area is gathering momentum. President Lee Jae Myung has publicly expressed his support for the initiative, fueling competition among cities vying to host major organizations. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport is currently drafting a roadmap for the second round of relocations, which will evaluate approximately 350 institutions and their affiliates currently situated in the capital region.

This plan follows up on the successful first round of relocations, which concluded in 2019. According to Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Yoon-duk, the roadmap could be unveiled this month or by September at the latest, after which it will be presented to the president for approval.

The government's push to relocate institutions gained further traction due to President Lee's repeated calls for grouping institutions within the same regions based on their sectors. "Balanced regional development is a matter of national survival, so we cannot approach it by simply scattering institutions around," Lee emphasized in a nationally televised news conference in March.