Good Practices and Innovations in Public Governance 2003-2011

2011 Category 3: Republic of Korea
Asia and the Pacific
Republic of Korea
2011 Category 3 — 1st Place Winner
Initiative:
918 – Information Network Village Project
Institution:
Ministry of Public Administration and Security
Description
Flight from rural towns, rural isolation and innovations in information technology
(IT) led to a deepening urban-rural information divide in Korea since the 1970s. Besides,
the loss of price competitiveness of major domestic agricultural products resulted
in the impoverishment of rural communities, to whom one-time, sporadic government
programs couldn’t help in a sustainable manner. The establishment of INVIL
solved some of these issues. INVIL (Information Network Village) is a project establishing
self-sustainable village communities that are capable of continued growth by
creating information network environments and improving the income of residents
through e-commerce in agricultural, fishing, and mountain regions usually excluded
from information networks.
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