The government plans to designate six areas in the south of the nation which have fallen under hard times due to the restructuring of shipbuilding and auto industries as employment crisis regions. 

Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon announced on Thursday that the government plans to designate the cities of Gunsan, Geoje and Tongyeong as well as Goseong county and districts in Changwon and Ulsan. 

Kim added that the government will also designate Gunsan as a special region for industrial crisis response and extend special state assistance for employment projects for shipbuilding industries. 

Under the designation, the six regions will be eligible to benefit from job stability measures through the state-sponsored unemployment insurance system as well as state assistance for local employment projects. 

Kim said that in order to supply liquidity for small businesses and subcontractors, the government will further provide 200 billion won in financial support. The minister added that the government will provide corporate and income tax exemptions for five years to start-ups within the designated regions. The government will also more than double facility investment support for such companies. 

In a bid to substantially implement such plans, Kim said the government decided to reflect urgent tasks in the supplementary budget bill.