[Seoul District News] Gwanak Family Happiness Center Establishes Family-Friendly Space, Promotes Various Women Network Strengthening Projects... Geumcheon-gu Recruiting Members for Youth Participation Committee... Jungnang-gu Provides 420 Million KRW Scholarships to 600 Students This Year... Dobong-gu Calls for 2023 Citizen Participation Budget District-Level Cooperative Agenda... 24th 'Yangcheon-gu Youth Award' Ceremony
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Jun-hee) is establishing itself as a women-friendly city through various policies such as enhancing community safety, creating a family-friendly environment, and expanding women's social participation.
The district selected areas vulnerable to safety and prone to crime by collecting residents' opinions and analyzing crime occurrence data, designating and renovating them as safe alleyways.
CCTVs and LED information boards were installed in dark alleys to make them easily visible at night, along with various safety facilities such as integrated control centers, emergency safety bells that call 112, and solar markers (photo) that illuminate dark paths, ensuring the safety of women returning home late at night and local residents.
To eradicate digital sexual crimes, Gwanak-gu is the first in the nation to promote a rental service for illegal filming camera self-inspection devices. A continuous illegal filming inspection system has been established, and through safety guardians and local women's safety resident monitoring groups, public multi-use facilities are regularly checked for illegal filming device installations.
Additionally, the district is the first nationwide to implement a support project for ‘wandering detectors’ equipped with GPS to prevent missing and safety accidents among women with developmental disabilities.
In June last year, the Gwanak Family Happiness Center was opened in Sinsa-dong, providing a family-friendly space where all family members can stay and enjoy, including a play experience center, infant toy library, Gwanak-style Mother Center ‘I-rang’, and media center.
Furthermore, plans are underway to strengthen women's networks through projects such as the ‘Oral History Data Compilation Project’, ‘Women-Friendly Planner Training’, and ‘Women-Friendly Enterprise Discovery’ to develop women's capabilities and expand social participation.
A district official stated, “This year, the third year since being designated a women-friendly city, we plan to accelerate the creation of a women-friendly city through full-scale projects. In particular, we will actively discover and expand women-friendly projects based on local characteristics and residents' needs to create a happy city for all in Gwanak.”
Geumcheon-gu (Mayor Yoo Sung-hoon) announced that it will publicly recruit members for the 2022 Geumcheon-gu Youth Participation Committee until April 27.
The ‘Geumcheon-gu Youth Participation Committee’ is an institutional body where youth actively participate in youth-related policies and projects to promote their own rights.
Any youth aged 13 to 18 residing in Geumcheon-gu or attending middle or high schools located in Geumcheon-gu can apply.
The committee consists of individual applicants and youth recommended by schools and institutions. Members will provide opinions on youth policies and propose policies on local community issues until December this year.
Specifically, they will carry out activities such as ▲democratic citizenship education ▲formation and operation of Youth Participation Committee subgroups ▲planning the Geumcheon-gu Youth Union Festival ▲youth general meetings and reporting sessions.
Additionally, members will have opportunities to participate in various youth programs.
Those interested can apply by filling out a Google form. Scanning the QR code on the promotional poster in the announcements section of the Geumcheon Youth Center website makes the application easy.
Mayor Yoo Sung-hoon said, “The Youth Participation Committee is formed annually to enable youth to participate in policy activities with a sense of ownership. We will actively support youth members to lead youth projects and events.”
Jungnang-gu (Mayor Ryu Kyung-gi) will select about 600 Jungnang scholarship students this year so that students can nurture their dreams and hopes even in difficult circumstances. The total scholarship fund amounts to 420 million KRW.
Scholarship recipients include ▲students admitted to prestigious universities and top 10% middle and high school students (academic excellence scholars) ▲winners of various competitions such as arts and sports (specialty scholars) ▲students with household income below 80% of median and academic ranking within top 70% (low-income scholars) ▲students recognized for good deeds, volunteer work, filial piety, or academic improvement ▲children of contributors to regional development ▲model scholarship students.
This year, the target group was expanded to include exemplary children of local small business owners and self-employed individuals affected by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. On the 28th, 117 students were selected and awarded scholarships totaling 77 million KRW at the first Jungnang scholarship certificate ceremony, supporting COVID-19 recovery efforts. On the 29th, 37 prestigious university admission scholars and 17 exemplary university students participating in the Jungnang Didimdol mentoring project received scholarships totaling 86 million KRW at the Bang Jeong-hwan Education Support Center.
The second round of Jungnang scholarships will select about 400 students, including top 10% academic achievers, low-income students, and specialty students, after August.
Mayor Ryu Kyung-gi said, “We support students who have persevered diligently toward their dreams despite the COVID-19 pandemic. We will continue to strengthen public education by operating the Bang Jeong-hwan Education Support Center and supporting school education expenses to create an excellent educational environment.”
The district established the ‘Jungnang-gu Scholarship Fund Establishment and Management Ordinance’ in 2008 to discover and nurture outstanding local talents and support economically disadvantaged students. Since then, about 16.4 billion KRW has been raised, and from 2010 to last year, 5,313 students received scholarships totaling approximately 5.15 billion KRW over 11 years.
Dobong-gu (Mayor Lee Dong-jin) is calling for proposals for the ‘2023 Citizen Participatory Budget District-Level Plan-Type Collaborative Agenda’ from April 1 to April 29.
The ‘Citizen Participatory Budget District-Level Plan-Type Collaborative Agenda’ is a collaborative governance process where residents and administration jointly deliberate and resolve community issues throughout the entire process from planning to execution, evaluation, and feedback.
Anyone interested in local issues related to economy, welfare, transportation, culture, environment, education, and overall district administration can participate in this call for proposals.
Those wishing to participate can submit an application (proposal) via email to the person in charge or visit the Dobong-gu Office Sustainable Development Division. The application form (proposal) can be downloaded from the Dobong-gu Office website (Announcements/Budget → Notices).
Proposed agendas will undergo feasibility review and public-private deliberation through the Collaborative Dobong-gu Council and relevant departments, and around June, the ‘Collaborative Dobong 50+ Roundtable’ will select the collaborative agendas. The ‘Collaborative Dobong 50+ Roundtable’ is a distinctive deliberation forum in Dobong-gu where various governance stakeholders gather to prioritize agendas and collect residents' opinions.
Selected agendas will be concretized into execution plans through deliberation around July. After approval by the Collaborative Dobong-gu Council, they will be finalized as the ‘2023 Community Innovation Plan’ and implemented from 2023.
Last year, seven agendas including ‘Local Commercial Area Revitalization with Neighborhood Shops’ were selected as collaborative agendas and have been actively implemented since this year.
Dobong-gu was the first among nationwide basic local governments in 2016 to enact the ‘Basic Ordinance for Activating Public-Private Collaboration in Dobong-gu’ as an institutional foundation for sustainable governance and was the first Seoul district to establish a ‘Community Innovation Plan’, leading local governance.
Mayor Lee Dong-jin said, “I hope this call for proposals becomes a communication channel where public and private sectors cooperate to solve local problems. We will listen carefully to residents' opinions and develop them into practical policies.”
Yangcheon-gu (Mayor Kim Soo-young) will award the 24th ‘Yangcheon-gu Youth Award’ in May, Youth Month, to encourage children and youth who serve as role models through exemplary behavior.
The ‘Yangcheon-gu Youth Award’ was established to promote a desirable youth image and foster healthy youth development. Up to 100 exemplary youth will be selected across five categories: literature and arts, sports, filial piety, resilient lifestyle, and volunteer work.
Nominees must be children or youth aged 9 to 20 (born between January 1, 2002, and December 31, 2013) who have resided in Yangcheon-gu for at least one year as of the application date. Recommendations can be made by school principals, local neighborhood chiefs, or by obtaining signatures from more than 20 residents. For the volunteer category, candidates can be nominated by representatives of local volunteer organizations.
Final recipients will be selected through deliberation by a panel of experts with relevant experience and knowledge for each category. The award ceremony is scheduled for May 27.
Applications are accepted from April 4 to April 18. Applicants can submit related documents by visiting the Family Policy Division at Yangcheon-gu Office (5th floor, Haenuri Town, 81 Mokdongdong-ro) or via electronic official documents or registered mail (postmarked by April 18).
Mayor Kim Soo-young said, “Youth are the protagonists and hope of future society. We ask for much interest and participation from the community to encourage youth who are exemplary in various fields.”
Detailed information including submission documents will be available on the Yangcheon-gu Office website’s Notices and Announcements section after April 1, and guidance is also available from the Family Policy Division’s Child and Youth Friendly Team.
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