[Develop Cultural Contents!]

A public hearing was held to propose a roadmap to the cultural contents industry of the Province and to exchange relevant opinions and presentations regarding the plan.

Gyeonggi and the Gyeonggi Digital Contents Agency held the public hearing to present the direction in policy and a practical plan to set up a mid- and long-term development strategy in the cultural industry of the Province.

At the public hearing, many related persons in the cultural industry along with corporate representatives participated, showing a great interest in the roadmap to develop a cultural industry within Gyeonggi Province.
The attraction of a cultural industry comes from having international competitive power that transcends the regional and national level. And it is rapidly expanding in sales volume in terms of a domestic cultural industry showing a growing trend of an average 10% annually.

I think the culture of the Republic of Korea can become the highest standard in the world. In such a respect, if you can take a greater interest and express your opinions to us, we will make every effort to help.

Thus, the Province plans to intensively develop the cultural contents industry including gaming, broadcasting, and video entertainment, and, to set up a customized policy to be developed through materializing the cultural industry of 31 cities and counties in the Province.
In particular, Gyeonggi plans to analyze the industrial conditions focusing on Goyang, Bucheon, and, Seongnam where the cultural contents industry is concentrated at present and build a characterized brand through customized development by region.

[Help for Dining Start-ups]

People who are thinking of starting a restaurant business could be at a loss as to where they should start. Gyeonggi Province has begun to provide assistance by setting up a center to provide the know-how regarding starting a business and managing it.

The number of start ups intended for making a living has jumped since the financial crisis in 1997. And common restaurants in Gyeonggi Province have rapidly increased from then on. Accordingly, more than 30,000 restaurants have been opened within 7 years of the financial crisis.

However, as consumer spending has been down and competition grew fiercer in 2004, more businesses have been closing their doors than new businesses starting up resulting in more than 4,000 restaurants closing within 2 years since 2005.

Moreover, in many cases, people started the business without being fully prepared causing a vicious cycle of start up, failure, and re-start that keeps repeating itself. Accordingly, to prevent failure following an unprepared business start up and to teach a more systematic management method for managers, Gyeonggi Province opened the center to support dining entrepreneurs in Gyeonggi Province for the first time last year and instructs in-depth management know-how from preparing foods to related operations.

For the successful management of a dining business, we provide food consulting and the secret formula for reasonable management through advice from experts in terms of a business conception and means of operation.

From now on, the center plans to stress its role to support businesses by strengthening its programs and becoming a helpful assistant for people who seek to start a dining business and who need the related management skills.

[Bundang-Suseo Road Stink Free!]

Many drivers may have experienced an unpleasant smell coming from somewhere while driving on the expressway between Bundang and Suseo and might have glanced out the window to see just where those smells are coming from. Seongnam City carried out a construction project to deal with the smell.

The bad smell, which for the past 14 years tortured drivers passing along the expressway in the province between Bundang and Suseo, was almost gone when a construction project to remove the odors at the 1st sewage disposal plant was completed.

Seongnam carried out a construction project since 2005 to install a roof-like structure to mask the odor costing $8.2 million. Regarding the system to remove the odor, a roof cover was installed over the 1st settling basin where foul water is collected. The bad odor occurring here is collected by a duct and is discharged into the air through a device to remove the odor using microbes leaving the treated product as almost having no smell.

Until now, the bad odor emitted from the 1st settling basin spread to neighboring roads and residential areas. From now on, we will try our best to create a clean and odorless environment in and around the sewage disposal plant.

Sungnam City announced that it has plans to implement a construction project to supplement the removal of bad odors with an additional $888,000 by 2010 regarding the partial bad odors that could occur from the 2nd disposal plant in case of unsettled weather or low pressure.

[Lacking Full-time Firefighters]

After reviewing the duty carried out by fire fighter civil servants in Gyeonggi Province, it was discovered that they handle 1/3 of the number of fires and emergencies in the nation. The fire fighting civil servants in Gyeonggi Province are understaffed.

The Gyeonggi Fire Headquarters unveiled its plan to additionally build fire stations in cities or counties, which were previously without one. The Gapyeong Fire Station which opened on the 5th ushers in an era of 1 fire station per city or county.

While a fire station has been made ready to serve the public the additional fire fighting manpower is lacking.
Even in the case of the Gapyeong Fire Station that opened on the 5th, 99 persons should have been deployed. Nevertheless, due to an adjusted standard fixing the number of workers at each department, it had to be opened with an insufficient amount of manpower with 81 persons including a seconded person from a neighboring fire station and 5 new personnel.

Regarding the acquisition rate of employees at a fire station in the Province, it stands at only 61.3%, which is far lower than the national average of 83%, let alone the 98% of Seoul. Consequently, in case of a fire or an emergency, there should be 21 employees at a 119 Safety Center, which are dispatched first, to work on two shifts. However, there are currently only 13 staff members.

Only the fire fighting civil servants in Gyeonggi Province work two shifts. To reduce such a demanding work schedule, time off has been provided three times every two months. However, it does not work well due to insufficient numbers of personnel to be dispatched and the great strain on employees.

To keep up with the growing numbers of fire stations, the insufficient fire fighting manpower should be reinforced to enhance the efficiency of fire fighting.

[Increase in Child Abuse]

It has been found that the number of reports and consultations regarding child abuse in Gyeonggi have increased year by year. They are children who have been neglected by parents due to continuous economic stagnation.

This is a child care center in Gyeonggi Province. Children, who are not protected by their parents or are abused, come to this place for treatment and consultation.

Most abused children have greater anxiety and a low self-esteem. So, I provide art therapy for emotional comfort.

In this regard, the Province formed a committee to prevent child abuse where experts in related fields participate to eliminate child abuse and take the lead in strengthening the protection and treatment for abused children, and to provide education to prevent an increasing number in cases of abuse.

We provide active as a child abuse protection institution consisting of experts to be employed to prevent and treat child abuse.

Consistent policy enforcement and public interest should be emphasizes regaring child abuse issues to save our children from suffering.

[A Few Ideas Discussed on Ship]

Gyeonggi Province held a discussion session to seek strategies for new development on a ship that went between Korea and China during 3 days from the 16th.

The objective of this unconventional discussion was to change the perspective of viewing the sea from the eyes of the shore to viewing the land form the perspective of the sea, and to try out strategies developed through different ideas. Around 80 experts and civil servants in each field attended the session for an active discussion.

Especially, at a presentation and discussion conducted with the theme of exchanging history on the Yellow Sea between Korea and China, various ideas were exchanged over building an undersea tunnel between Korea and China recently proposed by Gyeonggi Province.

The party, which arrived at Longchung, China after a long voyage of 13 hours, left for Weihi City, observed the Korean companies at the economic technical development district, then boarded the ferry again, and came back to Korea in the afternoon, on the 18th via Incheon Port.

[$60 million Investment Secured]

Gyeonggi Province succeeded in executing an agreement to obtain an investment of 60 million dollars from a US firm for a next generation mobile phone and wireless communication network service. Gyeonggi Province executed an MOU on an investment of 60 million dollars with GTELCOMM, a firm specializing in next generation mobile phone and wireless communication network services as of the 20th.

GTELCOMM, which has its head offices in Los Angeles, USA is a company which expects a sales volume of $79 million this year and produces the second largest WLL, or wireless local loop line, followed by LG.

There are many countries where the telephone and internet-using infrastructure is not installed. We plan to develop a business to construct such an infrastructure in such regions.

Pursuant to the Agreement, Gyeonggi Province and Seongnam will support GTELCOMM regarding an administrative procedure necessary for the acquisition of a factory site and the construction of a factory. GTELCOMM will set up an R&D facility at the Kins Tower, in Bundang and set up a manufacturing facility in the Province by 2011.
In addition, GTELCOMM has promised to hire 400 new R&D and production employees with preferential treatment given to Gyeonggi residents when hiring new recruits.