The problems with Korea’s international cooperation projects in urban and regional management4) include ① projects primarily focusing on short-term outcomes,
② disconnection between project planning and implementation, ③ limitations in information collection and lack of understanding of partner countries, and ④ lack of analysis of Korea’s urban policy experience. In this context, the study reviewed literature on Korea’s international cooperation project strategy and orientations for urban and regional management. Below are the challenges in policy to ensure the effectiveness and sustainability of international cooperation as pointed out by existing publications:
4) Referred to Chap. 2, Sec. 3 of ‘International Cooperation for Metropolitan Area Management in Developing Countries’ (Yehyun An et al. 2018).
International cooperation strategy
Develop and present international cooperation models and strategies at the national level and collect and manage the latest information on partner countries
Strong interconnections
Improve interconnections among sectors and projects by making a shift from an individual-project-based approach to a city-level holistic approach and ensuring information sharing among relevant organizations
Strong networks
For greater interconnection, build and maintain networks of players ranging from the private sector to international organizations from project planning to funding
Foundations for self-reliance in partner countries
Create an industrial ecosystem and build foundations for self-reliance through institutional, organizational, and human capacity building in partner countries
Urban management models
Categorize Korea’s urban policies and develop urban management models to facilitate cooperation with various players
Local capacity development
Foster local professionals with knowledge and expertise in international cooperation in urban and regional management and empower participating organizations including private businesses
These challenges in international cooperation projects in urban and regional management in Korea should be addressed in terms of international cooperation in metropolitan management in developing countries. As mentioned previously, ① clear leadership in capital region management policies, ② developing mid- and long-term plans including investment and regulation policies, and ③ facilitating governance to build foundations are the implications for applying Korea’s metropolitan area management policies to developing countries. In this regard, the following should be taken into consideration in
Balanced approach to development and preservation
Balanced national development where investment and regulation policies go in parallel is the key to metropolitan area management in the long run
Metropolitan governance and spearheading leadership
A metropolitan governance should be established to build foundations for the implementation of relevant policies, and there should be an institution, for example, the central government, that will take the lead
In consideration of the challenges Korea faced in international cooperation and the implications of Korea’s experience in metropolitan area management from the perspective of international cooperation, the following are orientations for international cooperation in metropolitan area management in developing countries:
First of all, far-sighted management that covers both development and preservation is required to ensure endogenous social and economic growth and sustainable metropolitan development in partner countries. Also, positive efforts should be made to identify international cooperation projects for metropolitan area management. As seen in Korea’s experience, planned development in response to development demands and appropriate regulations to prevent overcrowding and thoughtless development beyond the city’s capacity are essential for metropolitan management in developing countries. In particular, when selecting project sites, consideration should be given to settlements that influence each other rather than taking an administrative-district-based approach, given that the interests of multiple governments and parties are entangled in metropolitan areas. By building foundations for horizontal and vertical integration, international cooperation projects for metropolitan area management can contribute to the United States Sustainable Development Goal 11: Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable.
Second, given the characteristics of metropolitan areas where multiple interested parties and sectors influence each other, metropolitan area management projects should serve supporting roles in interconnecting individual projects. To ensure that planning projects, which are the mainstay of Korea’s international cooperation project, are linked with follow-up projects to materialize the plans effectively, it is essential to build an implementation system and empower the partner country to continue implementing the detailed content of the plans (Yongjin Kim and Seonghee Kim 2015, 2805).
Metropolitan area management plans can support the implementation of individual international cooperation projects by, for example, improving consistency among
plans, revamping metropolitan planning systems, resolving conflicts, building legal and institutional foundations for project management, and securing tax revenues and funding sources. Metropolitan area management projects contribute to improving the effectiveness of assistance projects by enabling phased fulfillment of projects and ensuring interconnection among projects.
Third, in response to changes in global environments and the rapid growth of metropolitan areas in developing countries, it is essential to collect and share the latest information and foster professionals to identify and implement international cooperation projects effectively. Compared with local projects, international cooperation projects require more quality information on, for example, partner countries’ social, cultural, and political conditions, relevant laws and institutions, basic statistics, and existing plans, and the latest local information should be collected and shared among the participating players. The preceding studies highlight participants’ understanding of and experience in international cooperation projects as a success factor for international cooperation projects. In this sense, it is essential to improve local interested parties’ understanding of the conditions and characteristics of international cooperation projects and build on their capabilities.
Lastly, a prerequisite to effective international cooperation projects is to have correct understanding of Korea’s experience, along with collecting information on the partner country. It is also needed to build a platform to identify and share relevant examples in Korea. Understanding the specific environment and political background of metropolitan area management in Korea and analyzing the mechanism by which this specific structure worked will allow for developing cooperation models that are applicable to developing countries. It is also important to understand how Korea achieved accomplishments in a short time from planning to implementation, as seen in the metropolitan area management discussed in this study, examine the merits and demerits thereof, and identify the measures to apply the example to different countries’ and cities’ contexts. It is essential to put together measures to apply Korea’s experience in metropolitan area management to other countries in an organized manner and build a structure to publicize and share them with developing countries.