Gwangju Mayor Lee Yong-seop Communicates with Merchants at Market Ahead of Seollal Holiday

On the 8th, Lee Yong-seop, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City, visited Songjeong 5-Day Market in Gwangsan-gu ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday to encourage merchants struggling due to COVID-19 and purchased ritual items. Photo by Gwangju Metropolitan City

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] On the 8th, Lee Yong-seop, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City, embarked on a communication campaign visiting various livelihood sites struggling due to COVID-19 in celebration of the Lunar New Year holiday.

This visit to livelihood sites was conducted mainly in traditional markets and alleyway commercial districts such as Songjeong Daily Market and Songjeong 5-Day Market on the 8th, and Jodae Rose Street on the 9th, to listen to the voices of small business owners severely affected by COVID-19 and to promote the revitalization of local commercial districts.

Mayor Lee’s first destination was Songjeong Daily Market and Songjeong 5-Day Market in Gwangsan-gu, which have suffered damage such as a decrease in visitors due to COVID-19. He carried out traditional market shopping for the Lunar New Year and listened to the difficulties faced by merchants.

The merchants appealed, “Visitors have sharply decreased due to the spread of COVID-19 and social distancing,” and added, “We are thoroughly conducting disinfection and temperature checks, so please visit with confidence.”

In response, Mayor Lee encouraged the merchants and explained various policies to revitalize traditional markets for the Lunar New Year holiday.

The Gwangju city government is strengthening quarantine measures so that citizens can visit traditional markets safely during this Lunar New Year holiday. Disinfection is conducted more than three times a week throughout the Gwangju market, and a self-inspection team has been formed to frequently check the status of quarantine and compliance with social distancing guidelines.

Additionally, to facilitate shopping for citizens, from the 9th to the 11th, 24 public parking lots with 1,947 spaces in Gwangju’s traditional markets and shopping districts, including Daein Market and Yangdong Market, will be opened free of charge.

Mayor Lee said, “I express my gratitude to the merchants who have cooperated to protect the safety of the Gwangju community by strictly adhering to quarantine rules despite the difficult situation,” and added, “To alleviate the suffering of small business owners struggling due to COVID-19, we will continue to closely monitor livelihood sites and devise more fundamental measures.”

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