Voting Results from 48 Media Outlets Covering Seoul: Mapo-gu Hyodobapsang Ranks First
Providing Meals and Care to 1,500 Seniors at 44 Meal Service Institutions, Expanding to 4,000 by 2025
Mapo-gu, Seoul (Mayor Park Gang-su) has won the ‘2024 Autonomous District Policy Award’ selected by the Seoul City Press Corps for the ‘Elders’ Participatory Filial Piety Meal for Residents Aged 75 and Over,’ a senior welfare policy implemented for the first time nationwide.
The ‘Autonomous District Policy Award’ is an award newly introduced this year by the Seoul City Press Corps, given to the most outstanding policy among the policies of the 25 autonomous districts.
Its significance is especially great as it is an award directly selected by reporters who have covered, compared, and evaluated the administrations of the 25 autonomous districts of Seoul through voting.
The voting was conducted among 48 media outlets covering Seoul, and Mapo-gu’s ‘Residents’ Participatory Filial Piety Meal’ ranked first. The award ceremony was held on December 18, 2024, at the Mapo-gu Office Policy Meeting Room.
The ‘Filial Piety Meal’ is a senior welfare policy first introduced nationwide by Mapo-gu in April 2023, providing high-quality lunch meals to seniors aged 75 and over regardless of income, along with a one-stop customized service linking health, legal, and tax consultations.
It has received great response as a policy that goes beyond simply providing meals to carefully care for the overall daily lives of seniors, enhancing their health and vitality.
Starting with six meal service institutions at the beginning of the project, the ‘Filial Piety Meal’ has now expanded to 44 meal service institutions, providing balanced meals to about 1,500 seniors daily.
The district is currently establishing a second side dish factory in Sangsu-dong to further expand the number of beneficiaries, aiming for completion in February 2025.
Once the second factory is completed, it will be able to prepare side dishes for 2,000 people per day, potentially increasing the number of beneficiaries of the Filial Piety Meal to up to 4,000.
The Filial Piety Meal is bringing positive changes to the local community beyond simple welfare. Seniors check on each other and provide help through the Filial Piety Meal, maintaining active social exchanges, while the community does not hesitate to offer support and encouragement.
Park Gang-su, Mayor of Mapo-gu, said, “At first, many people doubted whether this project could really be realized, but by moving forward step by step with ‘passion’ and ‘conviction’ together with the residents, the Filial Piety Meal has established itself as a ‘leading model of one-stop integrated senior welfare service.’ I am even more meaningful and proud to receive this year’s policy award selected by the Seoul City Press Corps. Taking this award as an opportunity, we will continue to develop policies that further improve the quality of life for seniors,” he said.
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