First Solo Attendance at a Domestic Event
On July 1, First Lady Kim Hye-kyung, wife of President Lee Jae-myung, attended the opening ceremony of the 4th Women Entrepreneurs Week held at the Shilla Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul. This was the first time since President Lee's inauguration that Mrs. Kim attended a public event held in Korea on her own.
In her congratulatory remarks, Mrs. Kim said, "I imagine that women entrepreneurs face not only the challenges of running a business, but also many difficulties unique to women, such as the glass ceiling and career interruptions." She added, "Nevertheless, I was deeply impressed by your efforts to contribute to solving social issues beyond your businesses." She went on to say, "I hope women entrepreneurs will take the lead in overcoming Korea's crises, especially the challenges of low growth and low birth rates." At the event, Lee Boo-jin, President of Hotel Shilla, sat at the same table as Mrs. Kim.
Women Entrepreneurs Week is held every year during the first week of July in accordance with the Act on Support for Women Entrepreneurs. The event is hosted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, and co-organized by five women's business organizations, including the Korea Women Entrepreneurs Association and the Korea Women Venture Association. Now in its fourth year, Women Entrepreneurs Week embodies the ambition for women-led businesses to grow larger, faster, and further, and the determination to lead efforts to solve the nation's low growth and low birth rate problems.
The opening ceremony, the first event of the week, was attended by approximately 500 people, including women entrepreneurs and related organizations, heads of SME associations and organizations, and representatives from companies leading efforts to address low birth rates and population aging. Government awards were presented to exemplary women entrepreneurs, including the Gold and Silver Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit and one Medal, four Presidential Citations, and six Prime Minister's Citations.
This year, the honor of receiving the Gold Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit went to Jin Deok-soo, CEO of Daehong Kostec. Since founding Daehong Kostec in 1992, Jin Deok-soo has led continuous research and development in precision steel rolling materials, successfully localizing ultra-precision rolling technology for the first time in Korea and growing the company into the nation's leading specialty re-rolling firm in the high-strength precision rolled products sector. Jin was also recognized for practicing social responsibility by establishing the Deoksoo Welfare Foundation, which operates care facilities for people with disabilities and elderly dementia patients.
Park Chang-sook, President of the Korea Women Entrepreneurs Association, said in her opening address, "The employment rate of women workers at women-led businesses is more than twice that of male-led businesses, putting us at the forefront of job creation for women and expanding women's participation in economic activities." She added, "In this era of low growth and low birth rates, women entrepreneurs will become the key to hope and take the lead in opening a brighter future."
Kim Sung-seop, Vice Minister of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, stated, "Expanding women's economic participation should not only increase production, but also become the foundation for a society where work and family are harmonized." He continued, "The Ministry will continue to support the spread of women-led startups that use science to solve everyday inconveniences in fields that improve women's health and quality of life, such as femtech, and help outstanding women entrepreneurs realize their dreams without career interruptions."
This 4th Women Entrepreneurs Week will feature a series of events, starting with the opening ceremony, followed by a policy forum on July 2, a luncheon forum for women CEOs on July 3, and an awards ceremony for the women's startup competition on July 4. Throughout July, there will also be an online joint recruitment fair for women-led businesses, an online exhibition of outstanding products from women-led companies, and regional commemorative events for Women Entrepreneurs Week.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
