By Kim Eun-jung
SEOUL, April 15 (Yonhap) — President Lee Jae Myung on Wednesday called for removing unnecessary and outdated regulations to promote new businesses while urging efforts to ensure global competitiveness.
Lee made the remarks at an inaugural meeting of the presidential committee tasked with rationalizing regulations, attended by officials from related ministries, senior presidential aides and experts.
“The most important way to restore the Korean economy’s growth potential is through regulatory rationalization,” he said. “We need to eliminate unnecessary and inefficient regulations in accordance with global standards and transition regulatory systems in cutting-edge industries toward a negative framework.”
President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting on rationalizing regulations held at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on April 15, 2026. (Yonhap)
He said negative-style regulation, a system in which activities are generally permitted unless explicitly prohibited by law, is essential to spur innovation in the face of rapidly evolving technologies.
“It is essential for the Korean economy, which relies heavily on trade, to secure global competitiveness,” he said.
Pointing to the side effects of the overconcentration of resources in the Seoul metropolitan area, Lee suggested the creation of large-scale regulatory special zones to promote innovation and balanced regional development.
“The greatest challenge facing the nation is the concentration of resources in the Seoul metropolitan area, which lowers the efficiency of resource distribution and undermines overall national competitiveness,” he said.
ejkim@yna.co.kr
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