Incheon City Launches Disability Independence Project...Nation's First Large Fund Support Program

Establishment of a Dedicated Organization to Support Community Integration for Persons with Disabilities Leaving Facilities
Comprehensive Disability Welfare Information at a Glance... Online Platform Development

Incheon City Hall

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] Incheon City is launching a project to support young people with developmental disabilities in accumulating a lump sum of money for the first time nationwide, and to help disabled individuals who have left institutions settle in the community by establishing a dedicated organization to assist the independence of disabled people in the region.

The city announced on the 4th that it will be the first local government to promote a new project this year to support asset formation for young people with developmental disabilities.

This project aims to help developmental disabled individuals, who have lower income levels compared to other disabilities, prepare funds for independence during the transition to adulthood, by providing matching support based on the amount saved.

Through the Happiness Seed Account (tentative name), if the individual deposits 150,000 KRW monthly as their own contribution, the city and district governments will add another 150,000 KRW, enabling the accumulation of about 10 million KRW over three years.

This money can be used for housing rental fees, education expenses, technical training costs, and other funds for independence, as well as medical expenses, treatment costs, and assistive device purchases, serving as seed money for the independence of young people with developmental disabilities.

The support targets developmental disabled individuals aged 16 to 39, and considering overlapping disabilities, age, and household income, 200 people will be selected annually starting this year.

Additionally, the city will establish and operate the "Incheon City Disabled Housing Transition Support Center" to support the community settlement of disabled people living in residential facilities and those with severe disabilities living at home. It plans to utilize purchased rental housing owned by Incheon Urban Corporation (Seonhak-dong, Yeonsu-gu) and will entrust operation to the Incheon Social Service Agency, aiming to open in the first half of this year.

The center will act as a control tower for deinstitutionalization and independence support, accompanying disabled individuals who wish to leave institutions and live independently from the preparation stage until they settle stably in the community, providing customized services.

An Incheon city official stated, "As the government's disability welfare paradigm shifts from protection and rehabilitation to independent living and social participation, we established the 'Five-Year Plan for Deinstitutionalization and Community Integration Support' in 2019. The Disabled Housing Transition Support Center is part of the detailed implementation plan, and we will strive to help disabled people settle in the community through continuous cooperation with related organizations and groups."

Along with this, Incheon City plans to launch an online platform within this month where disability welfare information can be viewed at a glance.

The platform will include information on disability welfare benefits, introductions to 227 disability welfare facilities, the Cyber Job Center which acts as a control tower for disability employment, and a "Participation Communication" feature where responsible officials respond immediately to inquiries.

Currently, information on disability welfare benefits is provided on the city’s homepage, while information on disability welfare facilities and applications for desired programs require visiting each facility’s homepage or direct visits, and job postings and applications for disabled employment are handled through each district and the Korea Employment Agency for the Disabled, causing significant inconvenience for disabled individuals to access and use information.

The disability welfare platform, selected as a specialized project of Incheon City in the Ministry of the Interior and Safety’s public contest, will allow real-time checking of applications and waiting lists for disability welfare facilities or programs, and will update non-face-to-face programs of welfare facilities, enabling service users to more easily utilize information in the untact (contactless) era.

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