Achieved Grade A in the 2022 Natural Disaster Safety Diagnosis Evaluation Hosted by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Jungnang-gu (Mayor Ryu Gyeong-gi) achieved the highest grade, Grade A, in the 2022 Natural Disaster Safety Diagnosis Evaluation hosted by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety on the 3rd.
Excluding 2019 and 2021 when the evaluation was not conducted, the district has achieved the highest grade for three consecutive times in 2018, 2020, and this year. This indicates that the natural disaster safety level is being maintained at a high standard.
The Natural Disaster Safety Diagnosis Evaluation is a system that inspects local governments' risk factors for natural disasters, disaster prevention policy implementation status, and facilities, and evaluates the safety level regarding natural disasters. It surveys 53 indicators in three areas: disaster risk factors, disaster prevention measures implementation, and facility inspection and maintenance, targeting 228 cities, counties, and districts, and diagnoses safety levels from A to E.
This year, the district meticulously conducted inspections and maintenance of vulnerable facilities such as disaster prevention facilities, cut slopes, and steep slopes during the thawing and flood seasons to prevent natural disasters, and implemented projects such as installation of flood prevention facilities and dredging of sewers and rainwater inlets, receiving excellent evaluations in the facility inspection and maintenance field.
By obtaining this Grade A, the district will be able to receive an additional 2% of damage recovery costs from the national treasury when a special disaster area is declared due to natural disasters in the future.
Jungnang-gu Mayor Ryu Gyeong-gi said, “It is meaningful that the proactive efforts to protect residents' lives and property and prevent disasters and accidents have resulted in achieving the highest grade,” and added, “In 2023, we will continue to prioritize residents' safety and carefully oversee the region to create an environment where people can live with peace of mind.”
Seocho-gu Maintains Certification by Passing Post-Surveillance Audit of Smart City International Standard... The Only Seoul Autonomous District to Obtain Both International and Domestic Certifications
Seocho-gu's smart administration has been recognized for excellence not only domestically but also internationally, continuing its reputation as a globally competitive smart city.
Seocho-gu (Mayor Jeon Seong-su) passed the second-year post-surveillance audit of the Smart City International Standard (ISO 37106), which it first acquired in December 2020, thereby maintaining the certification continuously.
The 'Smart City International Standard Certification' is awarded by the British Standards Institution (BSI) to cities at a world-class level in terms of smart city business feasibility and maturity, based on the 'Smart City Maturity 5-Level Criteria.'
This audit evaluates four principles: business management, citizen-centered service management, technology and digital asset management, and benefit realization strategy, along with 14 business management items and 9 key success factors. If a city scores level 3 (mature) or higher out of 5 levels in all 22 items, it receives the British industry standard mark (Smart City Kitemark). However, the qualification is maintained for three years only if the city passes the first and second-year post-surveillance audits after initial certification.
In this post-surveillance audit, the district improved its evaluation score compared to last year based on the BSI maturity model, enhancing its smart city capabilities.
Notably, among the 22 evaluation items, Seocho-gu received level 4 (leading) in 11 items including leadership, citizen-centered integrated service implementation, investment in smart data, and digital inclusion and channel management, and the highest level 5 (excellent) in identity and personal information management, proving its excellence as a smart city with 12 items at level 4 or above.
Outstanding cases selected in this evaluation include operating the 'Seocho Smart Youth Center,' a youth experience space adopting 4th industrial technologies; services utilizing IT technologies such as Seocho Eco Shelter and Zero Shop; and various programs for the disabled and elderly such as the 'Digital Development Training Center' and 'Smart Senior IT Experience Center and IT Learning Center.'
Separately, the district received domestic smart city certification from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in September last year. Seocho-gu is the only autonomous district in Seoul to have obtained both domestic and international smart city certifications.
Going forward, the district plans to strengthen urban competitiveness by promoting various smart policies incorporating advanced technologies.
In particular, this year, the district will operate safety management using a digital platform based on smart technology. Representative examples include the 'Seocho Building Alert' mobile app that delivers real-time disaster alerts and action guidelines to private buildings, the 'IoT Digital Twin-based Facility Safety Early Warning System' for managing aging and hazardous facilities, and the 'Digital Twin National Land-based Traffic System' based on communication data, establishing comprehensive traffic measures within the region.
Seocho-gu Mayor Jeon Seong-su said, “I am very pleased that Seocho-gu's smart city project has received excellent international evaluation,” and added, “We will continue to integrate smart technology into all aspects of administration to ensure residents enjoy safety and convenience.”
Gangseo-gu Selected as ‘Special Social Security Support Zone’ by the Ministry of Health and Welfare
The Only Seoul Autonomous District Selected, Securing 985 Million KRW Welfare Budget
Gangseo-gu, Seoul (Mayor Kim Tae-woo) announced that it was finally selected for the ‘2nd Special Social Security Support Zone’ project conducted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare.
The ‘Special Social Security Support Zone’ project is a program that selects areas vulnerable to social services such as permanent rental housing complexes and low-income dense areas according to Article 48 of the Social Security Benefits Act, supporting the establishment of a self-sustaining system to solve local problems independently.
In November last year, the Ministry of Health and Welfare conducted a nationwide call for applications for the ‘2nd Special Social Security Support Zone’ project targeting local governments.
The district submitted the ‘Project to Establish a Social Service Supply System through Welfare Self-Reliance Creation,’ aiming to build a resident autonomous participation-type basic living service supply system for food, clothing, and shelter; create psychological, emotional, and educational cultural services with local self-reliance to respond to social exclusion; and establish a support system to cultivate self-reliance among residents of permanent rental apartments, and was selected through the competition.
Out of 20 cities, counties, and districts nationwide that applied, a total of 8 areas including Gangseo-gu were selected, with Gangseo-gu being the only autonomous district in Seoul.
Accordingly, the district will receive a total welfare budget of 985 million KRW over four years (2023?2026), along with administrative support such as expert consulting.
This project will be conducted mainly in the Gayang 4 Complex permanent rental apartment area, with plans to establish a self-sustaining system by formulating a customized business plan considering local characteristics this year and laying the foundation for local welfare from 2024 to 2026.
Gangseo-gu Mayor Kim Tae-woo said, “Through the selected Special Social Security Support Zone project, we will strengthen the network among residents, public institutions, and the local community and do our best to grow the district into a city that can solve local problems independently,” and added, “We will continue to build a dense welfare safety net and create a Gangseo-gu that happily accompanies the socially vulnerable.”
Secured 22.3 Billion KRW in External Funds from 125 Various Public Contest Projects Last Year... 32 More Projects Compared to 2021
Dongdaemun-gu (Mayor Lee Pil-hyung) secured 22.3 billion KRW in external funds by being selected for 125 various public contest projects last year, achieving excellent results with 35 awards (selections) in external institutional evaluations.
The district proactively discovered various public contest projects hosted by the central government and external organizations in advance, shared them with project departments, discussed the promotion of public contest projects at weekly executive meetings to raise interest among executives and staff, and continuously made efforts such as conducting ‘Public Contest Project Response Strategy Education’ to enhance employees' capabilities.
As a result, compared to 2021, the number of selected projects increased by 32 (7%), and external funds secured increased by 1.4 billion KRW. The 22.3 billion KRW in external funds secured through public contest project selection excludes matching district funds per project and is expected to act as a lubricant to activate various projects for residents.
The project that secured the most external funds, the ‘Small Business Complex Support Center Construction and Operation Project,’ is a project to build a ‘Complex Support Center’ capable of one-stop support from product planning, design, product development to exhibition and sales within an urban-type small business cluster area, with a total budget of 3.5 billion KRW including 1 billion KRW national funds, 1.5 billion KRW city funds, and 1 billion KRW district funds.
Additionally, the district received excellent results in various external institutional evaluations, including winning the Prime Minister's Award in the nationwide library operation evaluation hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. Recently, it also won the Minister of the Interior and Safety Award at the 12th Children's Safety Awards hosted by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and further award news from last year's achievements is expected.
Dongdaemun-gu Mayor Lee Pil-hyung said, “The excellent results in external evaluations and public contest projects were achieved thanks to the efforts of the staff last year,” and added, “We will continue to strive with the staff to achieve good results this year, especially by properly implementing 10 core tasks such as developing the Cheongnyangni area as a metropolitan hub, creating youth infrastructure for the 2050 Youth Future City leap, and establishing a community safety net accompanying the vulnerable.”
Jongno-gu Secures 10.7 Billion KRW through Various Public Contest Projects in 2022
Jongno-gu (Mayor Jeong Moon-heon) actively applied for external institutional evaluations and public contest projects hosted by central government ministries and Seoul city in 2022, achieving remarkable results with awards in 152 fields and securing 10.7 billion KRW in project funds, proving its status as a top administrative district.
Despite difficulties such as the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and economic crisis, the district quietly pursued projects essential to improving residents' quality of life through continuous communication with residents, making the achievements even more valuable.
First, Jongno-gu achieved excellent results evenly in financial capacity, safety and health, education, and culture fields, receiving the Presidential Award at the ‘Local Government Productivity Awards.’ It also won the Presidential Award at the ‘Korea Land Awards’ for opening the Cheongwadae surrounding exploration path and cultural landscape projects.
Furthermore, the district demonstrated its capabilities across urban administration, safety and health administration, knowledge and innovation administration, winning ministerial awards at the ‘Active Administration Best Practice Competition,’ ‘Korea Knowledge Awards,’ and ‘Disaster Management Evaluation,’ respectively.
In the Korean Standards Association's Korea Service Quality Index (KS-SQI), Jongno-gu ranked first in Seoul for four consecutive years in the local government category, and also achieved top grades in the 2021?2022 comprehensive information disclosure evaluation and was selected as an excellent case in 2022 civil service improvement.
Achievements in the smart city field are also noteworthy. The district laid the foundation for introducing the 4th industry into administration by being selected as an autonomous district for resident participation-based local problem-solving projects, robot-utilized digital competency enhancement education, smart city solution technology verification, and demonstration support.
In the cleaning field, Jongno-gu won three crowns in cleaning administration by receiving the highest awards in Seoul city urban cleanliness evaluation, total volume system evaluation for household waste input, and sewer odor reduction performance evaluation.
In the job and economy field, the district was selected for a total of 45 public contest projects, securing about 4.2 billion KRW in project funds for 2022?2023.
In culture, tourism, and education fields, the district secured about 1.7 billion KRW in project funds through selections such as the 2022 autonomous district festival support and promotion project, sustainable tourism system foundation project, location-based tourism AR content service platform demonstration support project, new lifelong learning city selection, and public library operation revitalization project.
Jongno-gu Mayor Jeong Moon-heon said, “As the financial support method from central ministries and the city is gradually expanding through selection by public contest, we intend to actively participate in public contest projects that have a significant impact on residents,” and added, “We will continue to promote policies essential to residents and strive to maximize the efficiency of financial management.”
Yongsan-gu’s Winter Vacation Children’s English Camp Gains Popularity
Two Weeks from the 2nd to 13th, 7 Hours a Day at Sookmyung Women’s University Talent Hall
Yongsan-gu (Mayor Park Hee-young) started operating the ‘Winter Vacation Children’s English Camp’ with an orientation at 9:30 a.m. on the 2nd.
The district operates native English camps twice a year (summer and winter vacations) to nurture competitive talents in the global era.
This winter vacation English camp runs for two weeks from the 2nd to the 13th. Classes are held Monday to Friday, 7 hours a day from 9:20 a.m. to 4:20 p.m. The venue is the Talent Hall at Sookmyung Women’s University (36 Cheongpa-ro 47na-gil).
The camp operation is entrusted to the TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) program at Sookmyung Women’s University Graduate School, renowned as an international English teacher training institution. The main curriculum consists of experiential activities to improve practical foreign language skills, including science and arts-related activities. Field trips such as visits to Gwacheon National Science Museum are also included.
Previously, the district recruited participants on a first-come, first-served basis from December 7 last year, targeting elementary school students in grades 3 to 6 residing in Yongsan-gu. A total of 77 students (70 general, 7 low-income) were finally selected and grouped into classes through a level test.
Each class has fewer than 15 students, with a total of 6 classes operated. Two dedicated teachers are assigned per class (one native English teacher and one assistant teacher).
The participation fee is 800,000 KRW per person, with the district subsidizing 50%, so the individual burden is 400,000 KRW. For low-income groups (basic livelihood security recipients, near-poverty groups, low-income single-parent families, etc.), the district fully subsidizes the fee.
The completion ceremony is scheduled for the 13th, where certificates will be awarded and outstanding students per class (6 Volunteer Awards and 6 Leadership Awards) will be recognized.
A district official said, “We enhanced class quality by conducting customized lessons for each student and the cost is lower compared to private camps, which greatly reduces private education expenses.”
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