Gwangyang City Draws Attention with Model for Building a Vibrant City for Retirees

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Hyung-kwon] Gwangyang City, Jeollanam-do announced on the 24th that it has prepared a plan to establish a ‘Retiree Vitality City Model’ to be promoted this year as part of its population policy to respond to an aging society.

This measure was established by holding a preliminary working meeting of TF team leaders from eight departments on February 19 to propose more progressive ideas and by preparing specific implementation plans for each department according to policy discovery.

It also reflected the results of a survey conducted last year targeting about 300 retirees aged 50 or older in the region. Gwangyang, centered on the steel and port industries, is a city with many skilled technicians and high-income workers due to the characteristics of the local industrial structure, and about 2,800 retirees emerge annually who are highly interested in new jobs and talent donation.

The city plans to promote 51 detailed projects divided into four areas as support measures for them: ▲re-employment ▲startups ▲returning to farming or rural areas ▲social contribution activities.

It is expected to play a bridging role that greatly helps retirees, who have received relatively little attention in Gwangyang’s policies so far, to participate in economic activities and successfully settle in the region, thereby improving retirees’ life satisfaction.

Among the 51 detailed projects, the ‘re-employment’ area will promote 17 specialized employment service projects such as ▲Jeonnam-type 4050 Hope Job Incentive Support ▲New Middle-aged Career-type Job Project ▲Operation of Specialized Education Programs for New Middle-aged ▲Operation of Lifelong Education Center for Life’s Second Act.

The ‘startup’ area will strengthen information provision functions centered on the ‘Gwangyang City New Middle-aged Professional Support Center’ and expand generation-convergent startup support linking retirees’ skills and experience with youth ideas, including ▲Participation in Retiree Community Tourism Dure Project ▲Provision of Shared Offices for New Middle-aged.

Also, focusing on coexistence with local residents, the city plans to expand ‘returning to farming or rural areas’ support projects tailored to retirees’ characteristics to increase settlement possibilities.

To this end, it will promote 10 projects such as ▲Sunlight Nest Creation Project ▲Support for Return-to-Farming Startups and Housing Loans ▲New Farmer Agricultural Settlement Technology Education ▲Agricultural and Fishing Village Housing Improvement Loan Support Project.

In addition, 18 ‘social contribution activities’ support projects utilizing retirees’ careers will be promoted together, including ▲Operation of Gwangyang City Retiree Talent Volunteer Group ▲New Middle-aged Social Contribution Projects ▲Training of Professional Guides (Docents) for the Provincial Art Museum ▲Youth Employment Customized Mentoring Project.

A total budget of 33 billion KRW will be invested in the newly discovered retiree support policies, and the city plans to concretize the projects through separate TF team meetings and proceed with the projects step-by-step according to priority in securing budgets and implementation.

Lim Chae-gi, Director of Strategic Policy, said, “Based on this measure, we will actively support retirees to successfully live their second act of life by promoting differentiated policies suited to local conditions, focus administrative power on population policies responding to aging by preparing livable residential conditions, providing re-employment jobs, and discovering and promoting cases of settling and residing attracted by the city’s charm.”

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