The government plans to officially begin the first-stage construction of the main complex of the Gaesong Industrial Park in the North, covering one-million-pyong or 817 acres of land, early next year.

A government official said Friday that preparations for the groundbreaking are underway and that full construction to build necessary facilities for the industrial complex will begin next year.

The official said once the business firms that have entered the pilot complex of the industrial park begin full operation next year, the government will hire some four thousand North Korean workers who will receive training in necessary technical skills and industrial safety.

Meanwhile, the government continues to hold negotiations with the United States on the export of a number of strategic items produced within the complex.