1.55 Million Seoul SMEs Request Support Centered on Cooperatives
[Asia Economy Reporter Kwak Min-jae] The Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business (Kbiz) announced on the 29th that it held the "Seoul Small and Medium Business Meeting with Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon" at the Kbiz headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul.
The meeting was organized to discuss on-site difficulties faced by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Seoul area. Attendees from the Seoul city government included ▲ Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon ▲ Kim Young-hwan, Director of Economic and Job Planning ▲ Lee Byung-kwon, Head of Seoul Regional Small and Medium Venture Business Administration ▲ Kang Shin-myeon, Head of Seoul Regional Public Procurement Service ▲ Noh Gil-jun, Head of Seoul Employment and Labor Office. From the SME sector, about 40 representatives of Seoul-based SMEs attended, including ▲ Kim Ki-moon, Chairman of Kbiz ▲ Park Jong-seok, Chairman of Seoul Small and Medium Business Association ▲ Seo Byung-moon, Senior Vice Chairman of Kbiz (Chairman of Korea Foundry Industry Cooperative) ▲ Kwon Hyuk-hong, Senior Vice Chairman of Kbiz (Chairman of Korea Paper Industry Cooperative).
During the meeting, seven key issues were intensively discussed, including ▲ expanding the budget for Seoul’s SME cooperative development support projects ▲ installing electric vehicle charging stations at automobile repair shops ▲ enacting ordinances for business succession support and establishing a business succession center in Seoul ▲ building cooperative systems among SME cooperatives to revitalize Seoul’s tourism industry ▲ improvements related to Seoul’s purchase of urban railway bonds for construction projects.
In addition to on-site proposals, six issues were submitted in writing, including ▲ support for environmental improvement costs within the Gocheok Industrial Supplies Shopping Complex ▲ support for maintenance costs of air emission facilities for Seoul’s carbon neutrality efforts ▲ expansion of eligibility and support period for the Yellow Umbrella Fund subscription encouragement grant.
Kim Ki-moon, Chairman of Kbiz, said, “Seoul has 1.55 million SMEs and small business owners, as well as 97 cooperatives, so the impact of Seoul’s SME policies is significant. This year, the budget for activating SMEs and cooperatives in Seoul has been expanded to 2.5 billion KRW, setting an example for other local governments. We hope the Mayor will continue to take the lead in fostering SME cooperatives so that Seoul becomes a more business-friendly city.”
He added, “We also ask for active financial support policies such as expanding interest subsidy programs to alleviate the burdens faced by SMEs and small business owners struggling with high inflation, high interest rates, and high exchange rates.”
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