Dongjak District Launches 2020 Startup Funding Project for Vocational Education Special Zone

Intensive Startup Discovery and Industry-Academia Cluster Foundation Through December
Three Key Areas: Crowdfunding Support, Commercialization in Innovative Sectors, and the 2030 Reporter Program

Crowdfunding Education

[Asia Economy, reporter Park Jongil] Dongjak District (District Mayor Lee Changwoo) will implement the "2020 Dongjak District Startup Funding Project" through December this year, aiming to intensively discover and nurture startups and lay the groundwork for establishing an industry-academia cluster.

This project, selected last year as a region-led youth job creation initiative by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, will be carried out in three areas: ▲Crowdfunding support ▲Support for commercialization in innovative sectors ▲Operation of the 2030 Reporter program.

The program is open to a total of 30 participants, specifically unemployed individuals (including the economically inactive population and the unemployed) under the age of 39 who either reside in Seoul or are students at universities located within the district.

First, the "Crowdfunding Support" project will be conducted for 10 teams, including prospective entrepreneurs and local businesses, focusing on both reward-based and investment-based crowdfunding models.

Crowdfunding refers to creative companies raising funds from multiple investors through an intermediary platform. It is divided into reward-based crowdfunding, which involves selling services in the idea and cultural arts sectors, and investment-based crowdfunding, which involves the purchase of company stocks or bonds.

Specific support includes ▲Specialized education and mentoring in crowdfunding ▲Support for creating promotional content for companies ▲Practical assistance with registering and operating crowdfunding campaigns.

To ensure smooth project implementation, the district will recruit a sub-operator to oversee the crowdfunding project by the 13th.

Additionally, starting in May, the district will promote "Support for Commercialization in Innovative Sectors" for prospective entrepreneurs in high-employment, high-value-added industries such as IoT, AI, and big data.

This initiative will provide ▲Funding for commercialization, such as product development and information activities ▲Support for startup preparation spaces and shared office equipment ▲Education, consulting, and startup competitions.

Finally, during the first half of the year, the district will recruit and operate the "2030 Reporter" program for 10 local university students and others.

Through this reporter program, the district plans to ▲Plan and edit promotional content for local businesses ▲Promote the vocational education special zone ▲Survey shared spaces to establish the online platform "InCubator" for the vocational education special zone.

For applications and further inquiries, please contact the Job Policy Division (☎820-9731).

Jo Jinhee, head of the Job Policy Division, stated, "Through this project, we hope to provide opportunities for young people who wish to start a business or find employment to take on new challenges," adding, "We will continue to promote projects to create region-led youth jobs in the future."

This year, the district is also implementing the "Professional Creator Training Project," which aims to foster sustainable online marketing experts and connect them with employment opportunities in private companies to create youth jobs.