"Everyone's Talking About the Top 10 Teen News?"... There's a 'Sweet Tip' for That Easily Overlooked News

A delivery robot is crossing the pedestrian crosswalk on Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu. (Photo by Gangnam-gu Office)

The "Top 10 News" that inevitably appears at the end of the year varies depending on the institution announcing it and the content. Local governments compete to select and announce their Top 10 News around this time, but it is often overlooked with indifference. However, upon closer inspection, many of these contain policies closely related to our daily lives, and there are also hidden "useful tips."

Among the Top 10 News announced by Gangnam-gu on the 27th were "Gangnam’s 24/7 flawless safety through smart administration," "Installation of school routes for 10 schools that previously had no sidewalks," and "The robot era opened by Gangnam."

At a time when safety issues became important due to random stabbing incidents, Gangnam-gu operates the largest number of 7,428 CCTVs nationwide, and following the Itaewon tragedy, it has been increasing CCTVs combined with artificial intelligence in crowded areas.

Starting with the school zone at Unbuk Elementary School in March, school routes were installed at 10 elementary schools. This was a case of improving school zones where sidewalks and roads were not separated after a tragic accident last year in which an elementary school student died due to drunk driving. Since that unfortunate accident, steady measures have been implemented to prevent second and third accidents, earning the support of residents.

This year, with the enforcement of the amended Intelligent Robot Development and Distribution Promotion Act, Gangnam has become a testbed for several robot companies, signaling that the "robot era" is rapidly approaching us. It makes us think about what and how we should prepare.

The "Seongdong-type Semi-basement Housing Environment Improvement Project," recognized as the most empathetic policy by residents in Seongdong-gu, also shows the lessons learned from last year’s semi-basement flooding fatality and the efforts and actions taken to improve the situation. Seongdong-gu conducted the nation’s first full survey of semi-basement houses and gained residents’ support through the installation of flood prevention facilities and the enactment of ordinances supporting vulnerable housing.

A civil petitioner is downloading a civil complaint form through a QR code at the OK Civil Service Center. (Photo by Seocho District Office)

In Seocho-gu, the "Smart OK Civil Service Center reopening and the nation’s first digital civil service window operation" ranked first among the Top 10 News. The OK Civil Service Center was remodeled in July with digital technology upgrades, and it became the first local government in the country to establish an electronic civil service form system that allows applicants to fill out civil service application forms on their smartphones via QR codes and send them directly to the staff’s PC, reducing waiting times and improving work efficiency.

For citizens who frequently visit government offices due to civil service documents, this convenience is even more tangible. Various government agencies and local governments nationwide are benchmarking Seocho-gu’s case, raising expectations for improved quality of administrative services.

In Seoul, the recent urban healing program "Reading at Seoul Plaza and Gwanghwamun Book Yard" was ranked first among the Top 10 News, and the "15-minute subway re-boarding system," promoted as the city’s first creative administration case this year, also received great response.