The opening ceremony of Gangwon’s largest “Gangneung Metaverse Experience Center” was held. Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province (Governor Kim Jin-tae, hereinafter referred to as the “province”) announced that it will hold the opening ceremony of the “Gangneung Metaverse Experience Center” at the Gangneung Green City Experience Center Convention Building on December 23 at 2 p.m.
The Gangneung Metaverse Experience Center is a complex space where virtual convergence technology can be exhibited, promoted, experienced, and educated. It was built through a joint project between the Ministry of Science and ICT, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, and Gangneung City.
The experience center is being operated on a trial basis for 21 days from December 10 to 31 to ensure a safe viewing environment, and the official opening is scheduled for January 2, 2025.
Tours are operated by reservation in advance through the experience center website. The “Gangneung Metaverse Experience Center” is built on three floors above ground, and the technology and sports hall on the first floor includes a technology hall where you can experience the principles and application contents of metaverse technology and the Winter Olympics sports (skeleton, bobsleigh, snowboarding, alpine skiing, and speed skiing). It consists of a sports hall where you can directly experience sports (skating, curling) using cutting-edge information and communication technology (ICT) (simulators, graphic panels, gyro VR, etc.), and is located on the second floor. In the high-tech video theater, a media tower, meta-immersive zone, and high-tech video theater were built to depict the four seasons of Gangneung with cutting-edge video and sound effects linked to information and communication technology (ICT), and new ways of exploring, games, and sports through virtual reality experiences. It is designed to provide an amazing experience.
The Meta Edu Center on the 3rd floor consists of ‘Meta Lab’ where you can experience and educate cutting-edge technology, ‘Meta Play Zone’ where you can communicate and enjoy in a virtual space, and ‘Cafeteria’ which is a rest area.
During the previously held 2024 Gangwon Winter Youth Olympic Games (January 19 to February 1), approximately 4,000 visitors visited the technology and sports halls through pilot operation. In particular, International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach gave a favorable review of the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in the Winter Youth Olympics, saying, “Advanced technology and the Olympics have grown together.”
An official from Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province said, “The Gangneung Metaverse Experience Center will not only provide new things to see and enjoy for tourists in the Yeongdong region of Gangwon, but will also contribute to the province’s leap forward as a global city for future industries by fostering high-tech industries.”
Meanwhile, despite difficulties such as a decrease in local grant taxes due to economic conditions, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province (Governor Kim Jin-tae, hereinafter referred to as the ‘province’) improved the soundness and efficiency of local financial operations, and as a result, financial operations were found to be improving.
First, in the ‘2024 Local Government Financial Analysis’ hosted by the Ministry of Public Administration and Security targeting 243 local governments across the country, the province ranked first in the country in the field of improvement and received a special commendation from the Minister in recognition of its efforts to operate sound finances. You will receive 44 million won in grant taxes.
Financial analysis evaluates local governments by analyzing 14 major financial indicators in three areas: soundness, efficiency, and planning. This year, a new improvement category was created to evaluate local governments’ efforts to manage their finances soundly.
In the 8th popular election, the province established a plan to reorganize investment-contribution institutions, merging investment-contribution institutions with overlapping functions and slimming down the organization to reduce budget waste factors. As a result, the percentage of investment-to-withdrawal was lowered, and the settlement dividend for Taebaek Gadeoksan wind power investment stock was reduced. As a result, the non-tax revenue increase/decrease rate of the previous year significantly improved from -9.36% to 23.76%.
In the field of efficiency, it received good scores in △ non-tax revenue increase/decrease rate, △ investment/contribution/transfer ratio, and △ non-tax revenue arrears management, etc., receiving the highest grade of ‘A’.
In addition, the financial independence index, which is a representative indicator of the financial situation of local governments, recorded the highest in 20 years at 29.4% for the provincial headquarters in 2023.
Financial independence is a measure of the ratio of local taxes and non-tax revenue to the total budget. The higher the ratio, the better the ability to secure and operate the necessary money on one’s own.
In order to increase non-tax revenue, the province regularly monitors the collection status of each major tax source and thoroughly analyzes tax revenue trends. It has also worked to improve the collection rate by operating a non-tax revenue system throughout the year and implementing on-site consultation measures for arrears.
Kim Jin-tae, Governor of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, said, “We started with fiscal austerity and are pursuing sound fiscal management in the second half of the 8th popular election,” and added, “I would like to thank the residents of the province who have shared the pain of operating austerity budget so far, and we will use it well in the future.” “I will focus on writing,” he said.
Economy Queen Reporter Choi Hana
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