Gwangju City Announces 13th Livelihood Stabilization Measures Reflecting Opinions of Small Business Owners and Self-Employed

Extension of Gwangju Sangsaeng Card Discount Period by 6 Months... Early Activation of Public Delivery App

Citywide Campaign for Good Landlords, Expansion of COVID-19 Testing for Foreign Workers

On the morning of the 17th, Lee Yong-seop, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City, announced support measures for small business owners as part of the "13th Livelihood Stability Measures" to overcome COVID-19 at the city hall briefing room. Photo by Gwangju Metropolitan City

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Gwangju Metropolitan City announced the 13th Livelihood Stabilization Measures to Overcome COVID-19 on the 17th.

The city explained that this was the result of reflecting the opinions of small business owners, self-employed individuals, traditional markets, and neighborhood commercial districts gathered through field visits and meetings during the ‘Special Week for Small Business Owners’ held from the 8th to the 12th.

At an online press conference on the day, Lee Yong-seop, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City, said, “Now, as we are fighting the fierce final battle against COVID-19, it is time to take care of both quarantine and livelihoods simultaneously,” adding, “On one hand, we must protect the safety of the Gwangju community with flawless quarantine measures, and on the other hand, we must prepare special measures to restore citizens’ daily lives and the local economy by closely communicating with livelihood sites.” He explained the background of announcing the 13th Livelihood Stabilization Measures.

First, the city decided to extend the discount benefit period of the Gwangju Sangsaeng Card for six more months until the end of December this year.

Originally, the card usage discount benefit was scheduled to be provided until June, but the service period was extended to revitalize the local economy.

The additional budget of 30 billion KRW will be supported by securing 18 billion KRW from national funds and 12 billion KRW from city funds.

Launched in March 2019, the Gwangju Sangsaeng Card has established itself as a protector of neighborhood commercial districts by surpassing 1 trillion KRW in issuance amount within two years.

In particular, this card offers a special 10% discount benefit within a monthly limit of 1 million KRW per person (500,000 KRW each for prepaid and check cards), and it can only be used in Gwangju excluding department stores, large marts, and entertainment establishments, making it a win-win local currency that directly benefits small business owners and the self-employed.

Second, Gwangju City will actively work on securing affiliated stores and promoting consumer use to early activate the Gwangju-type public delivery app, which is scheduled for pilot operation in April and full-scale implementation in July.

The plan is to activate the app service from the pilot operation period in April so that small business owners can enjoy practical benefits.

The Gwangju-type public delivery app significantly reduces the burden on small business owners compared to existing commercial delivery apps by eliminating membership fees and advertising fees for small business owners (affiliated stores) and lowering the brokerage commission to around 2%. Additionally, consumers receive separate benefits when paying with the Gwangju Sangsaeng Card on the app, and it also includes a traditional market shopping function.

Gwangju City plans to mobilize all capabilities together with the Gwangju Economic Employment Promotion Agency, the project’s main institution, to secure as many affiliated stores as possible in a short period so that consumers can use it more conveniently than other delivery apps.

Third, Gwangju City decided to expand property tax reduction benefits for ‘Good Landlords’ compared to last year.

The determination of ‘Good Landlords’ who lead rent reductions is a great support for small business owners.

Gwangju City plans to promote a city-wide movement for good landlords by providing property tax reduction benefits according to the rent reduction rate for those who reduce rent by 10% or more for a lease period of three months or longer.

Fourth, following the administrative order for COVID-19 diagnostic testing for foreign workers at workplaces with five or more employees, Gwangju City will also conduct COVID-19 diagnostic testing for foreign workers at restaurants with high public access, even if the workplace has fewer than five employees.

This is a preemptive measure against concerns about local infection, and the relevant workers must undergo COVID-19 testing at nearby screening clinics by the 31st regardless of symptoms.

Gwangju City also plans to support treatment costs for COVID-19 confirmed cases among undocumented immigrants.

Additionally, Gwangju City will promptly proceed with measures for the blind spots in quarantine support (vulnerable businesses) such as support for installing standing tables in restaurants, signboard improvement projects for laundries, and support for businesses not affiliated with merchant associations that have not received quarantine supplies, as suggested by small business owners. The city will also actively promote plans linking future industries of Gwangju with small business owners, such as fostering the beauty industry in connection with beauty salons and expanding participation of PC room operators in the Gwangju e-sports project.

For matters requiring discussion with the central government, such as compensation for losses due to business suspension and detailed standards for administrative sanctions for violations of social distancing quarantine rules, the city plans to promptly propose them to be reflected in policies.

Moreover, the 4th disaster relief fund currently under discussion in the National Assembly is expected to provide substantial help to small business owners and self-employed individuals by supporting the most extensive and broadest range of affected groups in history while minimizing blind spots.

Regarding the government’s 4th disaster relief fund payment, Mayor Lee Yong-seop said, “If there are blind spots or insufficient areas, we will devise additional support measures,” adding, “We will continue to carefully examine the difficulties of small business owners, self-employed individuals, traditional markets, and neighborhood commercial districts and implement additional livelihood stabilization measures appropriately without missing the timing.”

Meanwhile, Gwangju City plans to continue field visits and meetings in the cultural and artistic fields during the second special week for one week starting from the 22nd.

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