[Interview] Kim Sooyoung, Yangcheon District Mayor: "Breaking Through Local Market Decline with the Nation's First Planned 'Youth Digital Supporters'"

5060 Small Business Owners and 2030 Youth Supporters Foster Generational Empathy and Communication... Youth Digital Supporters Assist Small Business Owners in Building Digital Environments Such as Online Stores, Delivery Apps, Social Network Services, and Blogs

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] “Last year, the COVID-19 pandemic changed many things. Just as nature resets and recovers after a typhoon passes, a new normal has emerged worldwide, which acts as a crisis for some and an opportunity for others.”

Kim Su-young, Mayor of Yangcheon-gu, said in an interview with this publication, “The reason we were able to carry out district administration without wavering despite the fierce waves of last year’s COVID-19 crisis was because we adhered firmly to the principle of ‘empathy.’ This year, we intend to respond to the COVID crisis with even bolder innovation and challenges.”

He also explained the background of introducing the Youth Digital Supporters project: “While large corporations and franchises have already laid the groundwork for smart stores by introducing kiosks amid the environment triggered by COVID-19, it was not easy for small business owners to adapt to these changes. When we empathized with their desperate situation, the solution became clear.”

The ‘Youth Digital Supporters,’ planned and operated for the first time nationwide in Yangcheon-gu, is a project inspired by the idea that digital technology familiar to young people could be a breakthrough for the stagnant local economy.

As non-face-to-face interactions, which can prevent virus spread, have become a key keyword in our society, parcel delivery services and delivery environments have recently expanded explosively. However, middle-aged and older small business owners, unfamiliar with the digital environment, were excluded from online marketing, worsening their management difficulties.

Youth Digital Supporters assist them by supporting the establishment of digital environments such as online stores, delivery apps, social network services, and blogs, helping to create a smart turnaround.

Last year, 19 supporters provided digital marketing support to about 30 local small business establishments over two months. This year, the pilot project from last year will be expanded and more systematic activities will continue until the end of the year.

Mayor Kim said, “I believe that constantly communicating to find marketing methods tailored to each small business scratched the itch of local small business owners. Financial support like disaster relief funds is important, but having someone who empathizes with the psychological contraction and difficulties felt during the COVID crisis must have been a great comfort to them.”

Small business owners are not the only beneficiaries of this project. The young people who worked as digital supporters unanimously say that experiencing entrepreneurship and management in advance has become a great asset.

Local small business owners, mostly in their 50s and 60s, called the 20s and 30s youth “teachers” and communicated day and night via texts and calls. It became an opportunity to melt away generational prejudices and conflicts.

Mayor Kim’s policy based on ‘empathy’ does not stop there. The ‘Nabinam Project,’ which empathized with the situation of single men in their 50s and brought their issues to the surface to change the welfare paradigm, and last year’s ‘Good Consumption’ campaign initiated at the beginning of COVID, both started from the same point: to evoke empathy for others living different lives and to overcome inequality and gaps for coexistence.

Entering its third year as a smart city special zone, Yangcheon-gu has implemented various smart administrative services such as smart security lights, AI-based waste separation systems, smart plugs, and smart crosswalks.

Last year, it introduced the nation’s first electric charging station using street lamps, aligning with the government’s Green New Deal policy.

Mayor Kim said, “When people think of a smart city, they often imagine science fiction movies where cars fly in the sky. But a smart city is not about arming a city with cutting-edge technology; it is about taking a half-step ahead at this point in time. Especially, we want to create a smart city centered on people by applying smart technology to welfare, safety, environment, and resident convenience facilities.”

This year, the smart crosswalks in school zones, which received favorable reviews from residents, will be expanded. Additionally, smart shelters using ICT technology to respond to road fine dust, heat waves, cold waves, and GPS-based safety keepers for missing people with developmental disabilities will be established.

Yangcheon-gu Mayor Kim Su-young said, “Since vaccinations began in March, hope for the recovery of daily life has come closer. So far, the first doses at nursing facilities and hospitals have proceeded smoothly, and in May, vaccination centers will be set up to start vaccinations for the general public. We are focusing administrative power to overcome the final hurdle of quarantine so that everyone can quickly return to the ordinary daily life they have long awaited,” delivering a message of overcoming COVID-19.

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