The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST), led by Minister Choi Hwi-young, held a roundtable with 16 metropolitan cities and provinces and regional content promotion agencies at the Sejong Convention Center in Sejong City on Monday, the ministry said. Approximately 100 officials from 16 cities and provinces attended to discuss current regional content policy issues.
The event was organized jointly with the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA).
"The content industry can generate complex policy effects including responding to regional depopulation, creating youth jobs and expanding the living population, so fiscal investment should be made from the perspective of building a regional content ecosystem rather than just supporting individual projects," said Lim Sung-hwan, director general of cultural industry policy at MCST.
"We will continuously strengthen full-cycle industrial support policies — from creation to commercialization and global market entry — so that content originating in local regions can become world-class intellectual property," Lim added.
According to the ministry, the roundtable was organized to explore ways to attract young populations and enhance the sustainability of regional economies through the content industry amid deepening concerns over regional population decline and local extinction. In particular, participants sought to strengthen cooperation among the central government, local governments and regional content promotion agencies, and to develop tailored support measures for regions, including gathering opinions ahead of the 2027 budget planning.
Attendees agreed that the content industry is a key driver capable of creating regional jobs and expanding the living population beyond the cultural sector alone. They pledged to join efforts in discovering content that leverages region-specific resources, providing stage-by-stage support for startups and growth, strengthening cooperation between regional promotion agencies and local governments, and building a mutually beneficial content industry ecosystem through region-focused support.
