Seo-gu Mayor Lee Ikang Reappointed as Standing Chairman of the Council of Local Governments for Village-Making Initiatives

Unanimous Appointment to the 7th Chairmanship by Member Cities; Two-Year Term Begins in November

Participation from 34 Local Governments Nationwide; Strengthening Cooperation for Realizing Resident Sovereignty

Lee Ikang, Mayor of Seo-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City, Jeollanam-do, has been unanimously reappointed as the 7th Standing Chairman of the Council of Local Governments for Village-Making Initiatives.

According to the Seo-gu Office, during the Council's 2nd regular meeting held on September 30 at Hotel Hyundai by Lahan Mokpo in Yeongam-gun, all member cities unanimously appointed Mayor Lee as the 7th Standing Chairman, following his previous term as the 6th Chairman. His term will run for two years, from November 2026 to October 2028.

The Council was established in 2015 with the aim of realizing local autonomy, fostering local communities, and improving residents' quality of life. Currently, it comprises 34 member local governments nationwide, including 3 metropolitan and 31 basic local governments.

Lee Ikang, Mayor of Seo District, Gwangju-Jeonnam Metropolitan City. Provided by Seo District Office

Mayor Lee plans to further strengthen solidarity and cooperation among member cities based on the innovation experience he gained during the 8th popularly elected administration. He also seeks to expand the role of local governments in substantially supporting residents' sovereignty.

Mayor Lee stated, "True resident sovereignty begins when residents directly decide on and address the issues of their own villages. Building upon the Council's achievements over the past 10 years, I will work to create a new decade in which local governments robustly support the decisions of residents."

Meanwhile, the regular meeting featured lectures, presentations, and a comprehensive discussion on the themes of village autonomy and resident sovereignty.

Seongman Jeon, Director of the Social Solidarity Economy Policy Center at the Korea Research Institute for Local Administration, gave a lecture titled "The Role and Direction of Local Governments in Village Autonomy and the Social Solidarity Economy." Afterwards, Mayor Lee presented on "The New Era of Resident Sovereignty," and Woonghee Woo, County Governor of Yeongam, spoke on "Making Villages a Brand." During the comprehensive discussion presided over by Professor Gwihee Bae from Soongsil University, participants deliberated on ways to reform the local government support system so that resident participation can lead to improvements in village life and income.

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