Elderly and Marriage Immigrants' Administrative Service Usage 'Blind Spots' to Be Resolved

Ministry of the Interior and Safety Holds 'Dialogue with Policy Customers on Government Innovation'

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The government has decided to join forces with innovation experts from various fields to resolve the inconveniences experienced by seniors, marriage immigrants, and others when using administrative services.

On the 27th, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced that during the 'Government Innovation Policy Dialogue with Customers' held that day, they listened to vivid opinions from people with disabilities, seniors, dual-income workers, multicultural families, foreign entrepreneurs, and discussed improvements. Attendees included Han Chang-seop, Vice Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, government innovation expert Professor Oh Cheol-ho from Soongsil University, and officials from related ministries such as the Ministry of Science and ICT, Ministry of Justice, and Financial Services Commission.

Participants shared their experiences and difficulties encountered while using administrative services. Kim Han-sol, a visually impaired YouTuber, spoke about the difficulty of finding entrances due to obstacles on braille blocks near community centers and the challenges faced in receiving COVID-19 related notifications. Kim Hyung-rae, a dual-income office worker, mentioned the hardship that both he and his spouse find it difficult to visit government offices on weekdays, yet some services still require in-person visits, forcing one to take leave.

O Sinan, a Turkish-born entrepreneur naturalized in 2008, who connects Korean and foreign businesspeople, shared various difficulties foreigners face when starting businesses or seeking jobs domestically. Iresha Perera, naturalized in 2009 from Sri Lanka, talked about the limited opportunities for marriage immigrants to receive lifestyle or legal information and the challenges encountered when using administrative services at government offices or online.

In response, government officials pledged to innovate administrative services and systems to eliminate blind spots and alleviate users' inconveniences. They agreed to hold discussions involving government ministries, public institutions, and experts like Professor Oh Cheol-ho to gather more diverse opinions and work together to develop concrete improvement measures.

Han Chang-seop, Vice Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, stated, “We will continuously communicate with service users to ensure that administrative services can be used comfortably without any blind spots.” He added, “We will promptly consult with relevant ministries regarding the issues discussed today and promote them as government innovation tasks.”