33.7% of Total Budget, 414.2 Billion KRW Allocated to Social Welfare Sector
Ulsan Ulju-gun will expand and promote customized welfare policies that closely reach out to realize a happy Ulju where no one is left behind this year.
Ulju-gun has allocated a total budget of 414.2 billion KRW, accounting for 33.7% of the total budget this year, to the social welfare sector. This is the largest scale ever, with the top priority being improving the quality of life for residents by investing in responding to low birth rates and aging, strengthening care, eliminating welfare blind spots, and expanding infrastructure.
The first major focus project in the social welfare sector this year is to provide welfare service support that covers the entire life cycle from birth to old age.
Ulju-gun will reduce the economic burden in early marriage and help stabilize housing by expanding support for newlyweds’ housing purchase and jeonse loan interest (up to 2%) from the previous maximum of 4 years to up to 8 years when a child is born.
Additionally, various projects will be implemented to help families with newborns reduce the initial economic burden of childcare and welcome their children happily. Support includes △ childbirth congratulatory goods (worth about 100,000 KRW) △ first meeting vouchers (2 million KRW for the first child, 3 million KRW for the second and subsequent children) △ childbirth encouragement money (700,000 KRW for the first child, 2.5 million KRW for the second, 5 million KRW for the third and beyond) △ congratulatory money for elementary, middle, and high school entrance for the third and subsequent children (300,000 KRW) △ indoor mats for households with the second child or more (worth about 300,000 KRW).
To provide nutritious warm meals at affordable prices to children from dual-income and single-parent families after school, the Aikium Restaurant will operate within child care facilities.
Preparation for acquiring UNICEF Child-Friendly City certification, which promotes a community environment where children can grow healthily and enjoy a safe and happy life, is also progressing smoothly.
Administrative efforts will focus on creating a child-rearing friendly environment, including providing up to 1 million KRW annually as youth growth support funds (for those born in 2006) to support youth growth and academic achievement.
Support for “healthy and enjoyable senior life” will also be strengthened. The filial piety usage voucher, which supports bathing and hairdressing expenses for seniors aged 65 and over, will be significantly increased from 60,000 KRW to 120,000 KRW annually, and the budget for customized environment improvement projects at senior centers will be increased.
The “Healthy Longevity! Smart Senior Center,” a dedicated channel for senior centers introduced as a pilot project in 2023 and receiving great responses with various programs such as singing classes and health gymnastics, will be expanded to 42 locations this year.
Starting this year, longevity goods (worth about 500,000 KRW) will be provided to seniors aged 100 and above to foster a social atmosphere of respect for the elderly. Also, for the first time in Ulsan, additional consolation allowances (300,000 KRW quarterly) will be provided to veterans on top of the existing honorary allowances to honor and support the livelihood stability of those who have devoted themselves to the nation.
The second key project focuses on “building a seamless and meticulous welfare safety net to illuminate welfare blind spots.”
Along with the AI speaker smart care project for elderly living alone, the 2060 Solitary Death Prevention Power Manager service will be implemented targeting youth and middle-aged people, who are blind spots for solitary deaths, to further strengthen solitary death prevention for single-person households.
Up to 200,000 KRW will be provided to persons with disabilities residing in Ulju for purchasing assistive devices, and support will be given to install convenience facilities such as wheelchairs in small-scale living facilities to improve accessibility.
Additionally, a housing environment improvement project will be carried out to support repairs and replacements of home facilities so that vulnerable housing groups can live in comfortable homes.
From this year, long-term care workers who have worked for more than three years at long-term care facilities will receive a new monthly care activity allowance of 50,000 KRW to encourage long-term service and improve the quality of elderly care services. Grandparents caring for 2-year-old infants in childcare blind spots will also receive a monthly care allowance of 300,000 KRW.
The final key project is to “focus all efforts on expanding welfare infrastructure to support systematic welfare services.”
Ulju Welfare Foundation, which will serve as the control tower for welfare policies in Ulsan for the first time, is being prepared with a goal to launch in August.
The Central Comprehensive Welfare Town, scheduled to open in May, will house facilities such as a senior welfare center, a disability welfare center, and a senior cafeteria, allowing various welfare services to be used in one place, which is expected to further enhance the welfare experience.
Large-scale construction projects such as regional childcare support centers, Our Neighborhood Integrated Care Centers, annexes to the Disability Welfare Center and Southern Disability Welfare Center, and volunteer centers will also be steadily promoted to ensure balanced services by region.
County Governor Lee Soon-geol said, “This year, we will do our best to actively implement welfare policies that reach out more closely to create a happy Ulju where all Ulju residents can live well.”
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