Governor Kim Young-rok announces the “Global Jeonnam” strategy to foster new carbon-neutral industries

- Joint Statement for Green Growth at the Japan-Korea Strait Governor meeting on October 22

[Shin Hyeon-gon, International Cooperation Center, 286-2410 / Kim Dong-cheol, Head of International Exchange Team, 286-2430]

(Five photos of the 30th Japan-Korea Strait Governor meeting)

Jeollanam-do Governor Kim Young-rok announced the “Global Jeonnam” strategy to foster new carbon-neutral industries by establishing an 8.2 GW offshore wind power plant and green hydrogen full-cycle industrial ecosystem at the Japan-Korea Strait Governor meeting held in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan, on October 22.

The Japan-Korea Strait Governor meeting is held annually on an alternating system between Korea and Japan. This year, the meeting was held for two days until October 23 in Fukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan, for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic started. Eight cities, provinces, and prefectures participated in this meeting, including Jeollanam-do Province, Busan Metropolitan City, Gyeongsangnam-do Province, and Jeju Special Self-Governing Province in Korea, as well as the Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, and Yamaguchi Prefectures in Japan.

The participating governors gave presentations under the theme of promotional strategy for green growth and freely discussed major international events and issues in each region.

Governor Kim Young-rok gave a keynote speech on the first day, October 22, with the theme “New Global Hub for Carbon Neutral Industries, Jeollanam-do Province,” saying, “Carbon neutrality is not a matter of choice for humanity, but a necessity. It is an urgent task that must be implemented right now.”

“Based on Jeollanam-do Province’s abundant renewable energy resources, we will successfully build an 8.2 GW offshore wind powerplant and establish a full-cycle industrial ecosystem with green hydrogen along with this. We will leap forward to become a global leader in the new carbon-neutral industry,” he added, drawing a positive response from the prefectural and provincial governors.

In addition, the Governor said in a free discussion, “As carbon neutrality and great energy transition are global issues that require cooperation, not competition, between countries, I hope we, as eight participating governors, can deliberate and grow together against those issues.”

The prefectural and provincial governors who attended the meeting also announced a joint statement promoting green growth. It contained matters related to the discussion and promotion of proposed collaborative exchange projects between cities and provinces for green growth, aiming to actively support and cooperate for international events held in each city, prefecture, and province, such as the “2023 Suncheon Bay International Garden Expo.”

Continued for 30 years since 1992, the Japan-Korea Strait Governor meeting has been promoting exchanges in various fields, including projects of regional tourism councils, starting with exchanges of environmental technology and fisheries relations in 1993.

Jeollanam-do Province has facilitated meetings in 1998, 2006, and 2014 and plans to spearhead the 31st meeting in 2023.