Gyeongsangbuk stands as one of the largest regional economies in South Korea, with a GRDP of approximately 134 trillion won. The province's economic strength is built upon a solid high-tech industrial structure, driving the nation's core supply chains in semiconductor components, wireless electronic devices, automotive manufacturing, and metallurgy, with the Gumi smart city serving as one of the country's largest electronics manufacturing hubs. Alongside its industrial prowess, Gyeongsangbuk is also renowned as the cultural capital of South Korea, home to a vast number of UNESCO World Heritage sites that actively leverage tourism and the heritage economy. The locality is also an attractive destination for global talent, with a diverse community of over 70,000 foreign residents living and working within the province.
Chairwoman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council Nguyen Thi Le receives Mr. Bae Han Chul and the high-level delegation from Gyeongsangbuk Province (Republic of Korea). - Photo: Ho Chi Minh City Web Portal
Over nearly a decade, cooperation between the two localities has made significant strides across core sectors. A prime example is the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed in 2024 between the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council and the Gyeongsangbuk-do Provincial Council, which opened up frameworks for exchanging urban planning and development experience. In education, both sides have strengthened connections through student and teacher exchange programs, alongside valuable scholarship initiatives for Ho Chi Minh City students. Concurrently, annual tourism promotion activities and international cultural festivals have served as vibrant bridges for people-to-people diplomacy.
Looking toward the future, particularly within the framework of the 3rd Ho Chi Minh City Friendship Dialogue in 2026 (FD 2026), the City is widening its corridors to attract direct investment and foster strategic alliances with partners from Gyeongsangbuk in five key sectors:
1. Semiconductor and Electronics Industries: Attracting investment and high-tech technology transfer in the supply chains of microcircuits, semiconductor chips, and smart electronic devices.
2. Educational Cooperation and Human Resource Training: Expanding academic partnership programs, training high-quality engineers possessing core technologies, and facilitating digital talent exchanges.
3. Heritage Tourism and the Cultural Economy: Collaborating on the development of premium tourism products, and exchanging heritage conservation models integrated with promoting the digital economy through cultural industries.
4. High-Tech Agriculture: Transferring smart farming solutions and biotechnology in agricultural processing, and building clean global supply chains.
5. Legislative Experience and Urban Management Exchanges: Maintaining the connection mechanism between the two Councils to optimize business support policies and promote social security.