Kim Eui-seung, head of the Economic Policy Office at the Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG).

The Hongneung area in Seoul, which is clustered with state-run research institutions such as Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) and Korea Development Institute (KDI), is emerging as a bio/medical industry R&D center of late.

Bio and medical companies have taken the place of state-run research institutions, which have already moved into Sejong City and elsewhere.

The reshaping of the Hongneung area comes in accordance with the Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG)’s policy of designating it as the “Economy-Based Urban Renewal New Deal” and nurturing the bio/medical industry.

The government’s designation of the Hongneung area as a mid-size R&D special development zone served as an impetus to spur the development of the area.

The R&D special development zone, a cluster of regional core technology institutions such as universities and state-invested research institutions, is an R&D model designed to nurture small-size, high-density public technology commercialization centers.

Tenant companies in the R&D special development zone are entitled to receive administrative and financial support, such as technology commercialization funds, infrastructure and tax benefits.

As for the government’s designation of the Hongneung area as the R&D special development zone, Kim Eui-seung, head of the Economic Policy Office at the Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG), said, “The Hongneung district was the nation’s first R&D complex, established in 1966, contributing greatly to the development of the national economy, but an innovative model is badly required to reinvigorated the area in the wake of the relocation of public entities in the year 2000 and after.”

The central government’s move to designate the area is expected to advance the resurgence of the regional economy, he added.

The strategy has begun to bear fruit in terms of investments. The area has attracted investments worth 95.5 billion won, created 408 new jobs, and tenant companies have posted 13.8 billion in sales since 2018.

The government’s designation as the R&D special development zone is spurring development momentum. Kim said the government’s designation was expected, considering the area with resources and potential, but it was uncertain.

Despite the uncertainty, the district’s R&D capabilities armed with KIST, Kyunghee University and Korea University research institutes as well as Seoul Biohub, a center of bio/medical startups, have played a part, he said.

Seoul Biohub, dedicated last December, is a key facility of the Hongneung bio/medical cluster, serving as the epicenter of the bio startup ecosystem in cooperation with universities, hospitals, and research institutes, as well as local clusters and related institutions, he said.

Seoul Biohub, which accommodates 68 startups, offers to them a wide range of support, from R&D to consulting and investment attraction. Startups that move into the research lab wing of Seoul Biohub are allowed to share the use of big-ticket research equipment, Kim said.

Seoul Biohub singed an MOU with bio clusters in Osong, Daegu, Wonju and other areas to dispel misgivings over overlapping investments last September. The step is to expand complementary relations, thus contributing to the development of the whoe of the Korean bio/medical industry.

Explaining the future of the Hongneung area related to the government designating it as an R&D special development zone, Kim said it will specialize in areas such as digital health care.

There will also be a focus on the nurturing of segments such as smart diagnosis medical equipment and AI-based medical software. Korean and foreign companies, including pharmaceutical companies and medical firms, have expressed their interest in investing in the area, he added.

The Hongneung area will be developed into a world-class digital health care innovation cluster to establish foundation to spur growth of bio/medical companies and their exploration of overseas markets, he said.