Gwangju City Selected as an 'Excellent Local Government' for Fostering Regional Small and Medium Enterprises

Mid-sized Growth Ladder Model 'Praised'
Minister of SMEs and Startups 'Commendation'

Gwangju City received a commendation from the Minister of SMEs and Startups at the '2024 2nd Regional Innovation Expo' held on the 6th at Chuncheon Songam Sports Town, Gangwon Province. From the second person on the left in the photo are Hong Yang-suk, Head of Gwangju City Corporate Support Team, and Kim Woo-jung, Director of Regional Enterprise Policy at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.
[Photo by Gwangju City]

Gwangju City has been selected as an excellent local government for fostering regional small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The city’s “Gwangju-type Growth Stage-by-Stage Enterprise Development Policy,” which implements a growth ladder model for SMEs and nurtures them into premium SMEs, was highly evaluated for its achievements.

On the 6th, at the ‘2024 Korea Local Era Expo’ held in conjunction with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ ‘2024 2nd Regional Innovation Fair’ at Chuncheon Songam Sports Town in Gangwon Province, Gwangju City was recognized for its contribution to fostering regional SMEs and received a commendation from the Minister of SMEs and Startups.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups comprehensively analyzed the performance of regional SME development plans implemented last year by 17 metropolitan cities and provinces, including regional achievement levels, performance plans, management appropriateness, policy effectiveness, plan preparation completeness, and best practices, selecting three metropolitan governments?Gwangju City, Jeonnam Province, and Gyeongnam Province?as excellent local governments.

The city annually establishes SME development plans reflecting the status of local SMEs, development directions, and support policies, and carries out various projects for regional companies.

In 2023, Gwangju City submitted 37 major projects as part of its SME development initiatives, including ▲financial sector ‘SME Fund Support Project’ ▲technology sector ‘Regional Star Company Development, Strong SME Development’ ▲human resources sector ‘Social Enterprise Development’ ▲export sector ‘Support for Strengthening Global Gwang Convergence Business Competitiveness’ ▲domestic market sector ‘Support for SME Online Marketing and Home Shopping Entry’ ▲startup sector ‘Customized Discovery and Development of Prospective Entrepreneurs’ ▲management sector ‘Smart Factory Support’ ▲and others such as ‘Establishment of National AI Convergence Complex.’

Additionally, as best practices, the city submitted ▲implementation of a growth ladder model for regional SMEs (from pre-premium to premium strong SMEs) ▲selection of regional unicorns aiming for KOSDAQ listing ▲creation of a platform for discovering and nurturing local food companies through the ‘Gwangju Food Expo’ ▲and revitalization of the local economy through financial support for small business owners.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups adopted Gwangju City’s ‘Implementation of a Growth Ladder Model for Regional SMEs’ as a best practice. In fact, HanA Co., Ltd., selected as a ‘Gwangju Pre-Premium Strong SME’ in 2021, expanded sales performance and new employment through support projects and leapt to a ‘Premium Strong SME’ within two years. The city is particularly fostering premium companies into global leading companies linked with government policies through the ‘Gwangju-type Growth Stage-by-Stage Enterprise Development Policy.’

Gwangju City received favorable evaluations for its excellent overall project execution rate, discovery of best practices through self-led enterprise support projects, and the implementation of various projects to foster regional SMEs.

Hong Na-sun, head of the Startup Promotion Division of Gwangju City, said, “We are implementing various support projects to foster regional SMEs,” and added, “We will continue to provide steady support to strengthen regional industrial competitiveness and promote regional economic development.”