South Jeolla Province has officially entered the race to host the 2028 G20 Summit, banking on the synergies from its upcoming administrative merger with Gwangju Metropolitan City.
The provincial government has commissioned a research study on a "basic conceptual plan for hosting the 2028 G20 Summit," timed to coincide with the launch of the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City on July 1 following the administrative merger of South Jeolla and Gwangju, the province said Saturday. The move is a preemptive step to prepare for the central government's expected open call for a host city, as part of a broader strategy for global outreach.
The province believes political consensus has already been established, as President Lee Jae-myung has said, "Even if there are infrastructure challenges, I would like this G20 Summit to be held in a regional city rather than the capital." Building on this, the province plans to strengthen its bid by putting forward five key themes: democracy, energy, human rights and peace, and K-Culture.
Above all, with the restoration of peace, human rights, and democratic order emerging as global priorities amid recent instability in the Middle East and the Russia-Ukraine war, the province plans to maximize the symbolic significance of the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement as a "birthplace of democratic action." South Jeolla also intends to leverage its renewable energy potential of 444 GW to present itself as a "living laboratory for energy transition" in an era of climate crisis. Additionally, the province aims to position the Jeonnam-Gwangju region as a place where the essence and origins of K-Culture remain alive, proposing a concept of "the most Korean G20" by weaving Korean culture and arts throughout the event's programs.
In particular, the province plans to differentiate itself from previous host cities by proposing a "solidarity and distributed conference" model that links multiple regional hubs rather than relying on a single-city hosting approach.
The Gwangju area would be developed as a hub for cultural and diplomatic functions centered on the Kim Dae-jung Convention Center and the Asia Culture Center. The eastern part of South Jeolla would utilize accommodation and tourism infrastructure being expanded ahead of the 2026 Yeosu World Island Expo, while the western part would be configured as a practice-oriented conference venue leveraging its renewable energy complexes. The three zones would operate as a single integrated conference network.
The province plans to finalize the basic conceptual plan by the end of this month, establish a phased implementation roadmap, and prepare to respond to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' open call process for G20 host cities from June onward.
"This G20 bid will serve as the ultimate stage to showcase to the nation and the world the resilience of the citizens of South Jeolla and Gwangju, who achieved the country's first metropolitan administrative merger in 40 years since Gwangju was separated as a directly governed city in 1986, and to announce the launch of the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City," said Son Myeong-do, policy planning officer of South Jeolla Province.