Senior Police to Be Deployed for Crime Prevention in Busan

Busan City, Busan Police Agency, and Housing Finance Corporation Collaborate on 'Senior Village Safety Guardians'
Creating Senior Jobs... Utilizing Physically Healthy Workforce Aged 60 and Above for Social Contribution

Front view of Busan Police Agency and Busan City Hall buildings. In Busan, senior workers aged 60 and above are deployed in safety village guardian projects such as crime prevention.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] ‘Senior Police’ will be deployed in the ‘operation’ to make Busan a crime-free and safe neighborhood.

Physically healthy senior citizens aged 60 and over living in Busan will participate in crime prevention activities. They are assigned the task of identifying dangerous factors and inconveniences throughout the neighborhood with their experienced ‘hawk eyes.’

The project they are involved in is called the ‘Senior Village Safety Keeper’ program. To carry out this project, Busan City, Busan Police Agency, and Korea Housing Finance Corporation have rolled up their sleeves together.

The three organizations agreed on the idea of bringing the experience and capabilities of the elderly generation into society in this aging era. They decided to create a new socially contributive senior job model by hiring senior personnel with expertise, such as former police officers, to cultivate safe neighborhoods free from various accidents and dangers.

They collaborate with district and county police stations. They perform crime prevention support activities on behalf of police officers, such as crime patrols, monitoring harmful places for youth, safe return home services, and checking CCTV safety facilities.

They also cooperate with local community centers and welfare centers. They are responsible for services such as housing and living safety support for low-income vulnerable groups including elderly living alone, households at risk of solitary death, and child heads of households; repairing aging residential facilities; installing electrical and gas safety equipment; and repairing damaged or dangerous public facilities.

This year, a total of 200 people will be recruited to work in the pilot project areas of Nam-gu, Haeundae-gu, Busanjin-gu, Suyeong-gu, and Yeongdo-gu. Working hours are flexible with a minimum of 60 hours per month, and the salary is up to 712,000 KRW per month including weekly holiday allowance.

The application period is from August 3 to 6 p.m. on August 17, and applications can be submitted to the senior clubs of the respective districts and counties. Eligible applicants must be physically healthy seniors aged 60 or older residing in Busan and able to work on weekends.

Preference will be given to those with experience as former police officers, security or guard company workers, or those with experience and relevant certifications in construction, electrical, or firefighting fields.

Busan City hopes to achieve effective crime prevention through this ‘Senior Project.’ They expect these seniors to contribute not only to securing residents’ safety through corrective actions on risks and inconveniences but also to creating neighborhoods safe from various accidents. Additionally, if it becomes a sustainable job for the elderly, it will be a win-win situation.

The city oversees the operation of the Senior Village Safety Keeper project, provides financial support and senior jobs, Korea Housing Finance Corporation provides operational support funds, and Busan Police Agency supports demand securing and crime prevention activities through local police stations and precincts.

The job project is carried out by the senior clubs of the respective districts and counties. This year’s project budget totals 800 million KRW, consisting of 300 million KRW supported by Korea Housing Finance Corporation and 500 million KRW from financial support job project funds (50% national funds, 50% city funds). The city plans to expand the project to all 16 districts and counties of Busan starting next year.

Shin Je-ho, Director of Welfare and Health Bureau of Busan City, said, “As this is the nation’s first job that deploys seniors in crime prevention activities to enhance effectiveness, the participation of capable elderly personnel is necessary.”

He added, “As the first project model to discover jobs suitable for the senior generation through cooperation and collaboration among public institutions, we will ensure it bears good fruit.”

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