64 Additional 'Maker Spaces' Established... 1.5 Billion KRW Support for Specialized Types

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daeseop] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 19th that it will establish 64 additional 'Maker Spaces' this year, where creative ideas can be freely realized.

Maker Spaces are creative and startup support spaces equipped with various equipment necessary for idea realization, such as 3D printers and laser cutters. Starting with 65 locations in 2018, a total of 128 Maker Spaces have been established and are currently operating nationwide. Over the past year, 137,000 people have used these spaces, 69,000 have received education, and 31,000 prototype productions have been supported.

This year, the plan is to add 60 general spaces focused on 'education and experience' and 4 specialized spaces with functions linking professional creation and startup support. On the 20th, the plan for the establishment and operation of Maker Spaces will be announced, and the ministry will recruit institutions to operate the spaces until the 28th of next month.

General Maker Spaces provide maker introductory education and creative activity experience programs to the public. Specialized spaces play a role in supporting startups and commercialization by linking professional creative activities such as prototype production with startup infrastructure.

Applicants must be public or private institutions and organizations with a high understanding of the maker movement and possess professional capabilities and infrastructure for education and creative activity support. General spaces require dedicated areas of about 100㎡ and at least 2 full-time staff, while specialized spaces require about 1000㎡ and at least 7 full-time staff.

Institutions or organizations currently operating related facilities can also apply if improvements such as program expansion are needed.

Selected institutions and organizations will receive support for costs related to space interior, equipment establishment, and program operation up to 70% of the total project cost (80% for general spaces). The budget is approximately 1.5 billion KRW for specialized spaces and about 160 million KRW for general spaces.

Kwon Daesu, Director of Startup Promotion Policy at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, said, "As this project enters its third year, this year we plan to further specialize the functions of the spaces based on regional characteristics to enhance self-sustainability, and strengthen the linkage and cooperation of spaces by region and field centered on specialized spaces to firmly establish regional maker ecosystems."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.