Gangdong-gu Ice Pack Reuse Selected as an Excellent Case of Proactive Administration

Nationwide First Local Government Establishes Ice Pack Reuse System Leading Resource Circulation Practice... Wins 2020 Active Administration Best Practice Competition, Receives Minister of Personnel Innovation Award and Secures 20 Million KRW Special Grant

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Gangdong-gu (Mayor Lee Jeong-hoon) received the ‘2020 Active Administration Best Practice Competition Commissioner of the Ministry of Personnel Management Award’ for being the ‘first local government nationwide to establish an ice pack reuse system,’ securing a special grant of 20 million KRW.

The ‘2020 Active Administration Best Practice Competition’ is jointly hosted by the Ministry of Personnel Management and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety to discover creative and highly impactful active administration cases and spread them throughout the public service.

The competition invites submissions of excellent active administration cases from central administrative agencies, local governments, public institutions, and local corporations, selecting awardees through document screening and evaluations by experts and citizen panels.

Gangdong-gu, which won the Commissioner’s Award this time, was recognized for leading the practice of resource circulation through cooperation among the public sector, private sector, and businesses (small merchants) by establishing the nation’s first ‘ice pack reuse system.’

The district focused on the fact that ice packs, which are typically discarded after a single use, can be reused, and in February last year, it established the nation’s first eco-friendly ice pack reuse collection system among local governments.

This year, Gangdong-gu signed a business agreement for ice pack reuse with traditional market merchant associations and civic groups, receiving great response by supplying reused ice packs to small merchants struggling due to COVID-19.

The district announced that it collected 176,304 ice packs from last year through this year, achieving a reduction of 88 tons of household waste.

Additionally, Choi Byung-ok, an official from the Cleaning Administration Department who led the project, was honored as an ‘Active Administration Person’ in recognition of his proactive work based on creativity and expertise.

Lee Jeong-hoon, Mayor of Gangdong-gu, said, “I am very pleased that the hard work of employees who carried out active administration to resolve residents’ inconveniences has been recognized with this award. We will continue to provide services that residents can empathize with and be satisfied by through proactive and creative administration.”