Seongnam City to Provide 200,000 Won School Entrance Preparation Grant for New Elementary Students Starting Next Year: "An Investment in the Future"

Seongnam City Expands Eco-Friendly Fruit Meal Program
Plans to Distribute "SOS Seongnam Bell" for Student Safety

Seongnam City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Shin Sangjin) announced on the 28th that it has finalized the amount of the school entrance preparation grant for new elementary school students at 200,000 won, and will implement this policy starting next year.

Seongnam City Hall exterior. Provided by Seongnam City

This amount is twice the originally planned support. Mayor Shin Sangjin recently approved the policy to increase the entrance preparation grant for new elementary school students to this level.

This measure takes into comprehensive consideration the continued high inflation, the cost of school supplies, and the financial burden on parents.

The city expects that 6,303 students will benefit from the program in its first year, and has allocated a budget of 1.2606 billion won for the project in next year's main budget.

The eligible recipients are: △ new elementary school students who are registered residents of Seongnam City as of the entrance date; and △ first-year students enrolling in alternative educational institutions registered with the Office of Education.

The 200,000 won entrance preparation grant will be provided in the form of a mobile Seongnam Love Gift Certificate.

Additionally, the city has decided to expand the eco-friendly fruit meal support program from all elementary, middle, and high school students to include students at alternative educational institutions. Accordingly, it has allocated a budget of 7 billion won for next year’s eco-friendly fruit meal program, which will be provided to 85,326 students at 162 schools.

The city will also implement the "Emergency Request (SOS) Seongnam Bell Distribution Project" for elementary school students. The Seongnam Bell is a portable device that emits a warning sound of over 100 dB when the button is pressed in an emergency. All elementary school students from grades 1 to 6 (38,016 students) will be eligible to receive the device. To this end, the city plans to establish the relevant ordinance and secure a project budget of 312.13 million won.

Mayor Shin Sangjin stated, "Initiatives such as the entrance preparation grant for new elementary school students, fruit meal provision, and the distribution of the Seongnam Bell are investments in the future of each and every child," adding, "We will support elementary students as they embark on a new beginning, ensure safe commutes to and from school, and provide healthy food, thereby increasing the overall satisfaction of our citizens."