Kim Kyung-hee, People Power Party Candidate for Icheon Mayor: "I Will Create a City Where Youth Begin"

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Eom In-yong] Kim Kyung-hee, People Power Party candidate for Icheon mayor, presented strengthening the youth startup ecosystem as a future growth strategy for Icheon on the 1st, stating that "what young people need is not vague encouragement, but actual spaces to challenge themselves and foundations to endure."

Candidate Kim mentioned the operational achievements of Icheon City's Youth Startup Support Center and said, "I will create a city where young people's ideas become businesses, and small startups become new sparks for the local economy," emphasizing that "Icheon must no longer be a city young people leave, but a city where they learn, challenge themselves, and grow."

Candidate Kim stated, "Youth entrepreneurship is not simply one person's business, but work that broadens a city's possibilities," adding that "one small desk, one conference room, one consultation can be a turning point that changes someone's life."

He continued, "Young people should not only head to Seoul and major metropolitan areas, but should be able to learn technology, create content, and grow businesses within Icheon," and announced, "I will create a growth ladder centered on the Youth Startup Support Center, connecting education, mentoring, investment linkage, and sales channel support."

Candidate Kim also outlined a vision to connect Icheon's industrial foundation with youth entrepreneurship.

The plan is to link Icheon's growth sectors—semiconductors, drones, future industries, content, and lifestyle services—with youth startups to foster new jobs and corporate ecosystems within the region.

He said, "Icheon has a semiconductor industry foundation centered on SK Hynix and has the potential for agriculture, culture, tourism, and advanced industries to grow together," adding, "now we must add young people's imagination and technology to this foundation."

Furthermore, he stated, "It is difficult for young entrepreneurs to achieve great success from the start. What matters is a city's capacity to enable people to challenge again even after failure. The government will not turn a blind eye to young people's first steps, but will be a reliable partner running alongside them."

He also said, "I will ensure young people do not give up their dreams in Icheon. Creating a city where young people can stay, challenge themselves, and succeed is the way to open Icheon's future," emphasizing that "protecting young people's today is the same as building Icheon's tomorrow."

Finally, Candidate Kim stated, "One young person's challenge changes a city's temperature," declaring, "Kim Kyung-hee believes in young people's potential and will support it to the end so that potential leads to Icheon's growth."