Jeonnam Foreign Resident Integration Support Call Center Shows Remarkable Results

Achieved 899 Consultations in Just Two Months of Operation
Expanding Language Services by Country to Enhance Communication

Scene of a three-way call demonstration at the Foreign Resident Integrated Support Call Center operated by Jeonnam Province. Provided by Jeonnam Province

Jeollanam-do announced on the 23rd that the 'Jeonnam Foreign Resident Integrated Support Call Center', established in Yeongam Daebul National Industrial Complex to help foreign residents settle early and improve their daily convenience, has achieved 899 consultations just two months after its official launch.

Since the end of last year, Jeollanam-do has benchmarked similar facilities in Seoul, Gwangju, and Cheonan to build a foreign resident consultation system featuring history management, statistical management, multilingual support, and three-way interpretation. After a pilot operation in December 2023, the call center began full-scale operations in January this year.

An analysis of consultation records from January to February this year shows that 368 Korean nationals and 127 foreign workers used the service. By language, Vietnamese was the most used with 275 cases, followed by Korean with 236. By region, Yeongam led with 300 cases, followed by Mokpo with 188. The most common topics were immigration-related issues (86 cases) and Korean language education (79 cases).

There was also a case where a Cambodian expectant mother inquired about medical expense support, and a three-way interpretation was conducted between a Suncheon city official, a Vietnamese seasonal worker, and a Vietnamese counselor regarding seasonal worker document preparation.

Jeollanam-do explained that achieving 899 consultations in just two months, even without special publicity such as a call center opening ceremony, indicates a high demand for foreign language consultation not only among foreign residents but also among local residents and professionals working with foreigners.

To improve service quality, the call center has focused on training counselors since December 2023, including hiring Vietnamese, Chinese, Indonesian, Cambodian, and Nepali counselors, creating a call center manual, providing education on understanding Jeollanam-do, basic counseling, etiquette, labor standards law, immigration law, industry understanding (such as shipbuilding), computer skills, and visa knowledge.

In addition, to strengthen collaboration with professional organizations, a consultative body has been formed with experts in labor, law, and tax, as well as universities and private organizations, to provide linked services when specialized counseling or support is needed.

Going forward, the call center plans to expand its services to a total of nine languages by adding Thai, Sri Lankan, Filipino, and Uzbek in the second half of this year to better meet user demand.

Kim Myungshin, Director of Population, Youth, and Immigration at Jeollanam-do, stated, "Through the call center's consultation results, we realized that the language barrier between local residents and foreign residents is greater than expected," and added, "We plan to provide systematic support to establish the center not just as a simple consultation window, but as a hub for solving practical issues faced by foreign residents."