Three Areas, Nine Projects, and 100 Key Policy Tasks
The Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business (KSMB) announced on the 13th that it has released policy recommendations reflecting the desires of the SME sector ahead of the 21st presidential election.
Thirteen SME organizations participated in this policy proposal, and to discover effective tasks, joint research was conducted with three academic societies related to SMEs.
In the recommendations, the SME Council diagnosed that "the rapidly growing Korean economy is now facing low growth, polarization, and a decline in innovation." They proposed 100 key policy tasks across 9 projects in 3 areas: sustainable jobs, manufacturing revival, and economic ecosystem circulation.
First, for 'sustainable jobs,' the SME Council presented three major tasks: 'creating workplaces where both SMEs and workers are happy,' 'turning the population crisis into an opportunity for innovative growth,' and 'resolving conflicts and improving regulations.'
The main policy tasks corresponding to these include ▲establishing a working hours system suited to reality ▲supporting industrial accident reduction with a preventive focus ▲expanding support for youth employment and long-term retention in SMEs ▲establishing a population department ▲creating a foundation for continued employment of elderly workers ▲supporting women-specialized companies through fostering the Femtech industry ▲introducing a regulatory jury system ▲clarifying criteria for adjusting the scope of SMEs ▲and rationalizing the minimum wage system.
Next, for the 'manufacturing revival,' the tasks selected were 'productivity innovation and the great transition to digital and carbon neutrality,' 'beyond domestic demand to the world,' and 'establishing a growth foundation for century-old companies.' Key policy tasks include ▲establishing a Presidential Committee for SME Manufacturing Innovation and Transition ▲reforming industrial electricity tariffs and strengthening energy efficiency support ▲enacting laws to promote AI utilization by SME industry ▲establishing grounds for comprehensive coordination and promotion of SME globalization ▲building a comprehensive support platform for SME global expansion ▲creating a cooperative-centered global supply chain response system ▲and enacting a special law on SME business succession.
Finally, for the 'economic ecosystem circulation,' the policy areas identified were 'fair trade and market balance,' 'hope for growth in the livelihood economy,' and 'bridging the gap between the metropolitan area and provinces.' Major policy tasks include ▲introducing a consultation request right for SME cooperatives ▲enhancing the effectiveness of the delivery payment linkage system ▲introducing an SME win-win finance index ▲improving unfair competition systems between construction work sectors ▲legalizing joint contracts under the main contractor management method ▲supporting re-startup by small business types ▲expanding specialized distribution channels for small merchants ▲allowing E-9 visas for major small business sectors ▲organizing similar and overlapping special zones ▲activating private investment in aging local industrial complexes ▲and fostering SME cooperatives as a collaborative model to respond to local extinction.
Kim Ki-moon, Chairman of the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business, said, "Recently, the Korean economy is facing a serious low-growth crisis amid rapidly changing trade environments, and major export industries such as automobiles, steel, and petrochemicals, as well as advanced future industries like semiconductors, are threatened by key competing countries." He added, "We hope that the 21st presidential election will become a stage for policy competition to reignite Korea's growth engine and that a leader who can give hope to not only SMEs but all citizens will be elected."
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