"Eight in 10 Gangwon Residents Live in the Seoul Metropolitan Area" Program Surpasses 137,000 Participants in 500 Days

【Financial News Chuncheon=Kim Ki-seop】The Gangwon Resident program has attracted more than 137,000 participants in its first 500 days, with roughly eight in 10 participants living in the Seoul metropolitan area.
According to Gangwon State on the 13th, the Gangwon Resident program, launched on May 1, 2025, marked its 500th day on the 12th. The figure represents 9.1% of the state's registered population, an approximately 11-fold increase from the more than 12,000 participants recorded on August 8 last year, the program's 100th day. The average number of new participants rose from 120 per day during the first 100 days to 310 per day over the following 400 days.
In particular, approximately 78% of participants live in the Seoul metropolitan area. Gangwon State plans to turn the metropolitan area's strong interest into actual visits and stays, using it as a foundation for realizing the ninth popularly elected administration's vision of a "Gangwon people want to stay in for a long time."
The reason the state is focusing on the number of participants is that visits and stays expand the resident population, contributing to the local economy and local government finances. Since this year, the resident population has been reflected in the calculation of ordinary local allocation taxes for depopulated areas. According to MOIS's calculation of the resident population in depopulated areas for the first quarter of 2026, the staying population in Gangwon State's depopulated areas was 6.1 times the registered population, the highest ratio nationwide.

Gangwon State has also continued on-site promotion to expand participation. Promotional booths were operated at major exhibitions in the Seoul metropolitan area, public institutions in other regions, and military enlistment cultural festivals, both on weekdays and weekends. On-site promotional activities have totaled more than 70 since the program began, resulting in more than 30,000 new participants.
Events have also been prepared to increase participants' actual visits and spending. From the 14th through the 18th, a 500-day anniversary comment event will be held on the Gangwon Hye Taek Easy website, with mobile Gangwon Gift Certificates awarded by lottery. A Chuseok event will also run through September 30, offering Naver Pay points to Gangwon Residents who have been issued resident cards and submit photos verifying visits to affiliated businesses.
Kim Dong-jun, Director of Regional Extinction Response Policy at Gangwon State, said, "The strength of the Gangwon Resident program has played a major role in the fact that the staying population in depopulated areas is among the highest in the country." He added, "We will expand on-site promotion and online events together so that participation leads to visits to affiliated businesses and spending."

[email protected] Kim Ki-seop Reporter