SEOUL– The government will provide its utmost support to establish a regional branch of the National Assembly in the central administrative city of Sejong, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Tuesday, as the country pushes for balanced national development.
“Since the establishment of the National Assembly’s Sejong branch is a project that is directly related to administration of the country, the government will offer its maximum support,” Kim said during a special committee meeting to support the Sejong administrative city.
“We will cooperate with the National Assembly and use our experience of relocating ministries to help related measures for building the Assembly branch,” he said.
© Lawmakers in September passed a bill to build the parliamentary branch in Sejong, some 160 kilometers south of Seoul, with an aim to decentralize the densely populated greater Seoul area and boost efficiency in the Assembly’s collaboration with government ministries and agencies located in the central administrative city.
The new parliamentary branch is expected to open by 2027.
Kim said there are still insufficient parts in plans of making Sejong the country’s administrative capital, but the government is ready to fix it.
“Sejong should be a futuristic city that can solve problems found in existing cities,” he said. “Sejong should also actively implement smart technologies, such as artificial intelligence, in its city administration and infrastructure management.”
For successful establishment of the parliamentary branch and growth of Sejong, Kim said the government will make improvements in the region’s social infrastructure, including transportation and waste treatment facilities.
To solve housing issues, the government plans to build 213,000 homes near the Assembly branch. It also plans to supply rental homes to public workers without homes.
Source: Yonhap News Agency