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The front-running presidential aspirant of the pro-government camp Thursday officially announced his bid for the December election, vowing to bolster the decade-old engagement policy toward North Korea.

Sohn Hak-kyu, a former Gyeonggi province governor, has been touted as the best chance for the pro-government camp to beat more popular conservative rivals.

He is the second in the pro-government camp to launch a presidential campaign, following last month's bid by former Unification Minister Chung Dong-young.

Sohn said he would adopt a "10-year plan" to help restore North Korea's stumbling economy and gain a strong position in a large portion of the North Korean market that could potentially open up in the future.

"I sense the need to creatively enhance the 'Sunshine Policy' and come up with a new North Korea policy that could help further boost inter-Korean reconciliation and exchanges," he said.

The Roh Moo-hyun administration and its predecessor have maintained the Sunshine Policy towards its reclusive communist neighbor despite conservative forces' criticism of providing "excessive" aid to the North which is not easily abandoning its nuclear weapons ambitions.

The engagement policy was highlighted when then-President Kim Dae-jung met North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang in 2000, resulting in a series of reconciliation projects including the reunion of separated families, construction of an inter-Korean industrial complex and a tour project in the North's scenic Geumgang Mountain. The two Koreas announced Wednesday that Roh will visit Pyongyang in late August to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-il for a second inter-Korean summit.

Sohn, who bolted from the main opposition Grand National Party (GNP) in March and recently joined the United New Democratic Party, consisting mostly of defectors from the pro-government Uri Party, also vowed that he would help bring about an "advanced economy and an integrated society" based on economic innovations and democratic values.

Sohn and six other presidential hopefuls of the pro-government camp have agreed to hold a month-long primary race in mid-September to select by mid-October a single candidate to run against the GNP candidate. The GNP will elect its nominee by August 21.

Recent polls show that either of the two leading GNP hopefuls -- former Seoul Mayor Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye, former GNP chairwoman and daughter of late President Park Chung-hee -- would easily win against any pro-government candidate.

According to a recent survey by the JoongAng Daily newspaper, Lee commands the highest approval rating of 34.8 percent, while Park trails with 25.8 percent. Sohn came in a distant third with 4.8 percent, followed by Chung with 4.6 percent. Other hopefuls trail with 1 to 2 percent. SEOUL, Aug. 9 (Yonhap News)