Busan is good

Busan Metropolitan City Wins Prime Minister’s Award at the 15th Korea Knowledge Awards for Its Digital Twin Project

내용

Busan Metropolitan City, led by Mayor Chun Jae-soo, announced that it received the Prime Minister’s Award at the 15th Korea Knowledge Awards ceremony held at 11:00 a.m. yesterday, September 10, at The Shilla Seoul, in recognition of its achievements in driving government innovation through its digital twin project.

The Korea Knowledge Awards are hosted by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and Busan submitted its entry for the competition in July.

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety evaluates organizations that have achieved results in government innovation and enhanced corporate competitiveness through knowledge-based administration and knowledge management. Final rankings are determined through a preliminary review, expert evaluation, and public evaluation.

The award is especially significant because Busan was the only special or metropolitan city selected and because it once again demonstrated the city’s capacity for innovation after receiving the Minister’s Award for two consecutive years in 2023 and 2024.

Busan entered the competition under the theme “Protecting Citizens’ Health and Safety through Urban Environmental Risk Prevention and Policy Feedback Based on Digital Twins and Knowledge Graphs.” The city received high marks for leading innovation in administrative services by utilizing digital technologies such as digital twins, the Internet of Things, and knowledge graphs.

The urban air quality management service, the first of its kind in Korea, uses 19 mobile Internet of Things sensors installed on four city bus routes to collect real-time urban air quality data, including fine particulate matter (PM10), ultrafine particulate matter (PM2.5), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The collected data are linked with three-dimensional spatial information based on a digital twin to analyze and predict changes in air quality and the spread of pollutants. The results will be used for urban air quality management, including determining routes for water-spraying vehicles, selecting target areas for fine-dust reduction projects, and establishing medium- and long-term reduction plans.

Busan has also developed a knowledge graph that integrates dispersed administrative knowledge, including government organizational charts, divisions of responsibilities, and civil complaint information. When a civil complaint is received, the intelligent civil complaint department matching service can quickly and accurately identify the appropriate department and assign the case, which is expected to reduce the time required to search for administrative information by more than 50 percent.

Building on this award, Busan plans to gradually expand successful initiatives such as Busan-style digital twin safety services, which leverage data and administrative knowledge, across the entire city from 2027 to 2029.

Through these efforts, the city will actively incorporate data generated throughout Busan into public administration and continue to identify and expand digital administrative services that deliver tangible benefits to citizens.

Mayor Chun Jae-soo said, “This award is particularly meaningful because it recognizes our achievement in applying advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence and digital twins to public administration and turning data and administrative knowledge into policies that protect citizens’ health and safety. To advance Busan’s citywide AI transformation, one of our key policy priorities, we will continue to swiftly reflect citizens’ voices and field data in policymaking and pursue innovations in knowledge-based administration that citizens can experience in their daily lives.”