[Asia Economy Reporter Kwak Min-jae] The Korea Federation of SMEs announced on the 15th that it will expand and reorganize the SME Cooperative Consulting Support Group.
This expansion of the consulting support group was promoted in response to the Korea Federation of SMEs' three-year plan to revitalize SME cooperatives, as local governments are actively enacting ordinances to support cooperative development and establishing revitalization plans.
The Korea Federation of SMEs recently appointed 60 new professional consultants and plans to expand the cooperative consulting support project, which was previously operated only at the Federation's headquarters, to 13 regional headquarters nationwide to provide close support to local cooperatives.
The Federation is finalizing the overhaul of the portal system so that cooperatives nationwide can conveniently apply for consulting services through an online portal. The consulting services are scheduled to officially begin in September.
The consulting support group is divided into two areas: establishment and operation of SME cooperatives, and joint projects. The establishment and operation area supports ▲ cooperative establishment ▲ holding regular general meetings ▲ interpretation of bylaws and regulations, and tax accounting. The joint projects area provides consulting for ▲ policy fund procurement ▲ participation in joint procurement ▲ R&D support, including the development of new joint projects and improvement of existing projects.
Cho Jin-hyung, head of the Cooperative Division at the Korea Federation of SMEs, said, “Seventeen metropolitan local governments and 67 basic local governments nationwide have enacted ordinances to support SME cooperatives, and among them, 14 have also established cooperative revitalization plans. Now, each cooperative must increase the utilization of policies such as participating in regionally specialized projects to activate joint projects.”
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