The government is promoting regionally-led innovation measures for public education in a bid to promote quality education outside of the capital area.

The Ministry of Education and the Presidential Committee for Decentralization and Balanced Development held a public hearing in Daejeon on Thursday and announced the draft of a plan for a special zone for education development.

The plan seeks to support the creation of prestigious regional high schools by strengthening autonomy in the student selection and education process while also supporting the expansion of local talent selection, including medical schools, so such students can advance in local universities instead of schools in Seoul.

A special education development zone is a system in which local government, education offices, universities, local businesses and local public institutions cooperate and support efforts to nurture local talent and help them settle.

The latest move comes amid concerns of an intensifying population outflow to the metropolitan area due to subpar educational conditions in non-metropolitan regions.