Changnyeong County Council Returns Full Budget for Overseas Government Training

Responding to Economic Downturn and High Inflation, Promoting Livelihood Support
Securing Resident-Focused Policy Resources

The Changnyeong County Council in South Gyeongsang Province announced on August 27, 2026, that it has decided to fully return the entire 60 million won budget allocated for overseas government training in 2026.

This decision was made to share the hardship experienced by county residents due to the ongoing economic downturn, high inflation, and persistent heatwaves during this summer, and to take the lead in providing support for people’s livelihoods.

Full refund of the 2026 official overseas training budget.
Photo by Changnyeong County Council

Although the budget had originally been allocated to strengthen the policy capabilities of council members and to benchmark advanced cases, the members reached a consensus to return the funds, taking into account the grave situation in which the economic burden on local small business owners, farmers, and residents is increasing.

This move reflects the council’s determination to create practical policy resources through genuine budget savings rather than formal overseas training. The meaningfulness of the decision was further emphasized by the fact that it was unanimously agreed upon by all members, including the council leadership.

The returned budget will be actively discussed with the county administration so that, after undergoing reviews such as the supplementary budget deliberation, it can be reallocated to urgent projects for revitalizing the local economy and supporting vulnerable groups.

Chairman Park Jaehong stated, "While I understand the need for overseas training to enhance the policy capacity of local councils, what matters most right now is caring for the lives of our residents and breathing new life into the local economy. Changnyeong County Council will continue to ensure that the valuable taxes paid by our residents are used in the most meaningful and necessary places through responsible governance."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.