ex-DP leader-culture industry
SEOUL, April 18 (Yonhap) — The former head of the Democratic Party, Lee Jae-myung, pledged on Friday to transform South Korea into one of the globe’s leading nations in terms of soft power. He committed to increasing cultural exports to reach 50 trillion won ($35.2 billion).
Last week, Lee announced his candidacy for president and currently tops the polls heading into the June 3 presidential election. Before visiting the southeastern city of Daegu to participate in a roundtable discussion about boosting webtoon content, he reaffirmed this commitment.
Our nation’s expenditure on culture presently constitutes merely 1.33 percent of our overall spending,” Lee stated in a Facebook post. “I am committed to raising this substantially to align with what one would expect from a genuine cultural leader.
He committed to providing “complete backing” for the worldwide dissemination of Korean cultural products, encompassing sectors such as cuisine, makeup, K-pop music, television shows, and online comics.
“He stated that they would provide wings for the surge of K-content initiated by professionals in the arts and culture sector.” He pledged to increase cultural exports to 50 trillion won and grow the domestic market to 300 trillion won by 2030.
Lee additionally committed to boosting policy support for the K-content sector, which involves increasing investment in R&D activities as well as offering financial aid and tax advantages.
He stated that they would expand tax incentives, presently applicable to video content, to include webtoons too, and provide strong backing for small and medium-sized enterprises to penetrate international markets.
Converting South Korea into a leading cultural force is integral to Lee’s nationwide plan, dubbed the “K-initiative.” He introduced this strategy when declaring his candidacy for president.
julesyi@yna.co.kr
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