2022-2023 Total 1 Billion KRW Dispute Support. Gwanak-gu, the Only District Selected Among Seoul Autonomous Districts, Promotes 4 Projects in Safety and Welfare with New Technologies for Residents' Direct Experience... Gwanak-gu Provides 4 Billion KRW Loan at 0.8% Ultra-Low Interest for COVID-19 Affected SMEs and Small Businesses
[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Jun-hee) was the only district selected in the ‘2022~2023 Living Field Smart City Pilot Project Autonomous District Contest’ hosted by Seoul City.
This contest project is a smart city pilot project that implements new technologies developed by companies in actual living environments to solve urban problems and improve residents' quality of life, aiming to address local issues that residents can directly experience.
The district will promote the project over two years from 2022 to 2023, receiving 1 billion KRW out of the total project cost of 1.2 billion KRW from the city budget to introduce smart city services that can solve local problems within Gwanak-gu.
The district established three main strategies: ▲eliminating safety and welfare blind spots ▲operating resident living labs ▲introducing services that residents can directly experience. It planned four services using IoT and the latest technologies in welfare and safety sectors and was finally selected. During the contest process, ideas and service planning reflected the opinions of residents and experts to enhance the completeness and feasibility of the plan.
First, the ‘Smart Senior Center,’ a future-oriented comprehensive elderly welfare service derived through living lab activities based on residents’ proposals in the idea contest, supports one-stop healthcare and digital gap reduction experience programs to prepare for the digital divide deepened by COVID-19 and the super-aged society.
Additionally, two welfare services, including the ‘IoT-based Missing Prevention Smart Keeper,’ which expands the smart keeper service for integrated disabled daycare centers developed by Gwanak-gu in 2021 to general daycare centers and dementia support centers?vulnerable groups prone to disappearance?enhance search functions to improve convenience for socially vulnerable groups and eliminate welfare blind spots.
Beyond welfare, the district plans to enhance resident safety and security through the nation’s first ‘Urban Autonomous Patrol Robot Safety Patrol Service’ and ‘IoT and Smart City Integrated Operation and Response System,’ expanding smart city infrastructure to provide safety and inclusive smart city services that residents can feel.
Once implemented, these services are expected to eliminate welfare blind spots for socially vulnerable groups such as the elderly and children, contribute to accident prevention in crime-prone areas like dark alleys and routes home, and enable rapid response in emergencies.
The district will collaborate with technology-holding companies and residents to analyze local problems, plan services, and build infrastructure, aiming to operate some services within 2022.
A district official stated, “We will eliminate policy blind spots in safety and welfare for socially vulnerable groups through the introduction of new technologies,” adding, “We will make every effort to ensure the project becomes a successful model of living smart innovation and a safe, inclusive smart city in Gwanak, solving local problems from the residents’ perspective and creating it together with them.”
Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Jun-hee) is conducting the ultra-low interest ‘2022 Small and Medium Enterprise Development Fund Loan Support’ project to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and small business owners struggling due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic.
The district lowered the loan interest rate of the SME development fund from 1.5% last year to 0.8% until the end of this year, accepting applications on a rolling basis until funds are exhausted instead of the previous biannual application periods, to provide prompt management stabilization support for SMEs and small business owners.
Eligible applicants are SMEs and small business owners registered in Gwanak-gu for more than six months as of the application date, with sales performance and collateral capability. Each business can receive up to 100 million KRW (up to 50 million KRW for small business owners) in loans, which must be used for facility funds, operating funds, or technology development funds, with a repayment plan of 2 years grace period and 3 years equal installment repayment.
Interested companies and small business owners can apply by visiting Woori Bank Gwanak-gu Office Branch or Seoul Credit Guarantee Foundation Gwanak Branch for collateral evaluation, then submitting the application form, business plan, and a copy of the business registration certificate to the district’s Local Commercial Activation Division.
For more detailed information about the ‘2022 Gwanak-gu SME Development Fund Loan Support,’ please check the Gwanak-gu Office website (News & Notices → Announcements) or contact the Local Commercial Activation Division.
Last year, the district provided 2.745 billion KRW in loans to 70 SMEs and small business owners through the SME development fund, and additionally collaborated with Woori Bank and Shinhan Bank to secure 20 billion KRW in guarantee funds, conducting an interest-free loan support project of up to 20 million KRW for 1,012 businesses, which received great response.
A district official expressed, “We hope this loan support project will alleviate the financial difficulties of SMEs and small business owners struggling due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic,” and added, “We will continue to actively discover and promote projects that contribute to revitalizing the local economy.”
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