On the 21st at the Government Seoul Office, (from left) Jin Ok-dong, Chairman of Shinhan Financial Group, Joo Hyung-hwan, Vice Chairman of the Low Birthrate and Aging Society Committee, and Kim Young-hwan, Secretary General of the Foundation for Cooperation between Large, Small and Medium Enterprises and Agriculture and Fisheries, are signing a business agreement related to the contribution to the Win-Win Cooperation Fund for Large and Small-Medium Enterprises. [Photo by Shinhan Financial Group]
Shinhan Financial Group announced on the morning of the 21st that it signed a business agreement related to the contribution to the Large and Small-Medium Enterprise Win-Win Cooperation Fund together with the Low Fertility and Aging Society Committee and the Foundation for Cooperation between Large, Small-Medium Enterprises and Agriculture and Fisheries at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul.
Through this agreement, Shinhan Financial will contribute 10 billion KRW to the win-win cooperation fund for small and medium enterprises, which was launched as part of the “Measures to Reverse the Low Fertility Trend” announced by the Low Fertility and Aging Society Committee in June, becoming the first private company to do so.
The win-win cooperation fund is intended to be used as support funds for small and medium enterprises to hire replacement workers when their employees take parental leave, and it is expected to contribute to expanding the care sector by creating practical conditions for a stable childcare environment.
At the event, Joo Hyung-hwan, Vice Chairman of the Low Fertility and Aging Society Committee, Kim Young-hwan, Secretary General of the Foundation for Cooperation between Large, Small-Medium Enterprises and Agriculture and Fisheries, and Jin Ok-dong, Chairman of Shinhan Financial, pledged to actively promote joint cooperation projects by identifying blind spots in support along with the business agreement.
Joo Hyung-hwan, Vice Chairman of the Low Fertility and Aging Society Committee, said, “It is expected that large companies stepping forward to reduce the burden on small and medium enterprises and support work-life balance can be a solution to overcoming low fertility,” adding, “Through this agreement, we will encourage an organizational culture with work-life balance and support workers and companies to work together.”
Kim Young-hwan, Secretary General of the Foundation for Cooperation between Large, Small-Medium Enterprises and Agriculture and Fisheries, stated, “As Shinhan Financial is the first to publicly commit to co-growth with small and medium enterprises through this agreement, the Foundation will also devise various methods to support small and medium enterprises.”
Jin Ok-dong, Chairman of Shinhan Financial, said, “The low fertility issue must be supported practically in various ways for the sustainable development of our society and future generations,” and added, “Shinhan Financial will continue to lead efforts to bring about positive changes in society as a whole to overcome the low fertility problem.”
Since 2018, Shinhan Financial has been running the ‘Shinhan Dream Dodam Center’ project in cooperation with the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family to support after-school care activities for children of dual-income families to reduce parenting burdens and prevent career interruptions for women, providing a total of 22 billion KRW until last year.
The ‘Shinhan Dream Dodam Center’ completed the installation of 200 centers last month, and plans to continue the project over the next three years with an additional 9 billion KRW in support for renovating aging facilities and supporting specialized programs.
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