Second Public Agency Relocation Risks Failure If Politics Prevails

The government's second phase of relocating public institutions to regional areas is gaining momentum. The administration plans to finalize target agencies and destinations this year, with actual relocations beginning next year.

Prime Minister Kim Min-seok emphasized at a national policy coordination meeting on the 5th that the government will "minimize agencies remaining in the capital region while avoiding pork-barrel distribution." He stressed linking relocations to region-specific industries.

"The second relocation is part of structural reform to ease the Seoul-centric system and diversify regional growth engines through the distribution of population, jobs, and capital," Kim said, adding that the government would examine problems from the first phase.

The first relocation initiative, launched in 2005 under the Roh Moo-hyun administration, had significant effectiveness problems. Over roughly a decade, the government spent 10 trillion won to create 10 innovation cities nationwide and relocate 153 public institutions.

However, mechanical distribution without considering regional characteristics, combined with inadequate settlement conditions and infrastructure, limited population inflows. The "weekend exodus" phenomenon—employees commuting from or returning to the capital region on weekends—also diminished the relocation's effectiveness.

President Lee Jae-myung ultimately ordered a halt to chartered commuter buses operating between the capital region and relocated institutions earlier this year.

To avoid repeating the first phase's failure as a "half-baked relocation," agencies and regions must be selected based strictly on balanced national development and effectiveness. With June local elections approaching, the second relocation must not become a vote-winning tool or political bargaining chip.

It is concerning that ruling party lawmakers have proposed legislation calling for the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives to move to South Jeolla Province and the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation and Korea Racing Authority to North Jeolla Province, following the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and HMM headquarters' relocation to Busan.

The second public agency relocation is a core policy priority for President Lee. If the national strategy to achieve balanced development through a "five poles, three special zones" framework becomes entangled in political winds, regional revitalization through public and private sector relocations will amount to nothing.

The ruling party and administration must resist the temptation to link relocations to local elections. They should pursue the second phase solely from the perspective of national interest and efficiency to avoid repeating the first phase's failures.