Ministry of SMEs and Startups, in Collaboration with Ministry of Education, Establishes Enterprise-University Cooperation Framework to Address Regional Decline

Signing of a Business Agreement for Regional Specialized Industry and Local Workforce Development

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 13th that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Education to promote collaboration on policies for regional specialized industries and local workforce development. The two ministries agreed on the necessity of inter-ministerial cooperation to establish a cooperative foundation between companies and universities, and decided to actively respond to regional extinction by closely linking support policies for local SMEs with support systems for regionally innovative universities.

First, comprehensive support will be provided for talent development in key regional industries and corporate growth. Various corporate support measures such as funding, market access, and manufacturing innovation from the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ ‘Legend 50+’ program will be linked with the Ministry of Education’s workforce development system to cultivate field-required talent through customized training programs. The ‘Regional Innovation Leading Company R&D’ initiative will also be promoted, where regional innovative leading companies collaborate with universities and other regional innovation entities to conduct research and development (R&D). This aims to establish a cooperative system among local governments, SMEs, and universities in the field of technology development.

The activation of foreign student recruitment by local SMEs will also be pursued. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups will establish a system for utilizing foreign students in SMEs, including a foreign student matching platform, while the Ministry of Education will support universities in attracting and nurturing foreign students tailored to field demand. Additionally, to strengthen the role of universities as regional startup hubs, a linked model with ‘Startup-Centered Universities’ will be developed to systematically provide startup education and commercialization support within universities.

Oh Young-joo, Minister of SMEs and Startups, stated, “The issue of regional extinction must be solved through organic collaboration among the government, local governments, companies, and universities,” adding, “Through this cooperation with the Ministry of Education, we will focus on promoting innovative growth and globalization support so that local SMEs can fully play their role as agents of innovation revitalizing the regional economy.”