Pohang City Launches 'Emergency Economic Countermeasures Headquarters' to Restore Livelihood Economy

On April 1st, residents are filling out documents to apply for emergency disaster relief funds due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) at the Ocheon-eup Administrative Welfare Center in Nam-gu, Pohang-si, Gyeongbuk.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongwook Park] Pohang City, Gyeongbuk announced on the 13th that it will actively work to revive the stagnant local economy caused by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic by forming an 'Emergency Economic Countermeasures Headquarters' involving various sectors.

The Emergency Economic Countermeasures Headquarters, co-headed by Mayor Lee Kang-deok of Pohang and Kim Jae-dong, President of the Pohang Chamber of Commerce and Industry, will operate on a two-track basis with a 'Corporate Support Task Force' and a 'Small Business Support Task Force.'

The Corporate Support Task Force consists of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Steel Industrial Complex Management Corporation, Small and Medium Business Corporation, Technopark, and business organizations, and will be responsible for corporate financial support, investment attraction, and fostering new industries. The Small Business Support Task Force is composed of the Bank of Korea, Employment and Labor Office, Small Enterprise and Market Service, Gyeongbuk Credit Guarantee Foundation, and merchant organizations, and will implement customized support measures such as financial support, management assistance, and job support for small business owners.

The main projects of the countermeasures headquarters include ▲expanding the special guarantee support project for small business owners by 15 billion KRW and providing 840 million KRW in interest difference support ▲expanding the small business card fee support project by 4.6 billion KRW and spreading it throughout Gyeongbuk Province ▲small business owners' small-scale management environment improvement project (50% facility improvement cost, up to 5 million KRW support) and vacant store rent support project (vacant stores for over one year, 250,000 KRW per month, 3 million KRW annually).

Additionally, projects to support small business owners such as 'Help Jobs' and 'Pohang Sale Festa' will be implemented, along with various tax support plans for local residents, including a 50% reduction in water and sewage charges (4 billion KRW), and reductions in resident tax (equalized portion) and property tax.

Mayor Lee Kang-deok of Pohang stated, "Although the spread of COVID-19 in Pohang is calming down, it is still too early to be complacent," and pledged, "We will make every effort to enable the local economy to take off again through support for small business owners, including large-scale consumption promotion events such as the Pohang Sale Festa."

Meanwhile, starting from the 20th, Pohang City will launch major economic recovery policies beginning with a 10% special discount on the 'Pohang Love Gift Certificate.' The total issuance amount of local gift certificates this year, including the special discount sales, is expected to reach 400 billion KRW, the largest scale among local governments nationwide.

As of the 9th, applications for small and medium enterprise operating funds and policy fund support reached 228 cases (78.588 billion KRW). In the small business financial support sector, 8,185 cases (371.997 billion KRW) were submitted to the Small Enterprise and Market Service Pohang Center, and 12,326 cases (545.451 billion KRW) to the Gyeongbuk Credit Guarantee Foundation Pohang branch.

The 'Pohang Love Sharing Good Rent Civic Movement' for small business owners has seen participation from 617 locations as of the 10th, spreading a spirit of cooperation among citizens, institutions, and organizations.

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