<기사제목>Ministry of SMEs and Startups and Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy Collaborate to Support Corporate ESG Management and Resolve Export Logistics Issues

The 2nd Policy Council Meeting Held... Support for Digital Transformation and Carbon Neutrality

Park Jin-gyu, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy have agreed to jointly operate an ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management support platform for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-sized companies. The two ministries also plan to collaborate to resolve export logistics difficulties and expand support for materials, parts, and equipment (SoBuJang) and root industries.

On the morning of the 6th, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy will hold the 2nd Policy Council at the Government Complex Daejeon. This council, resumed after about two and a half years, will be attended by vice ministers from both ministries to discuss cooperation measures on digital transformation, carbon neutrality, and resolving export logistics issues.

They first agreed to cooperate to ensure the prompt passage of digital transformation-related bills currently under review in the National Assembly (the Act on Promotion of Industrial Digital Transformation and the Act on Support for Smart Manufacturing Innovation of SMEs).

They will establish a task force for industrial complex data collaboration and hold joint briefings to enable companies and universities within industrial complexes to actively utilize data information from the AI manufacturing platform (KAMP).

To alleviate difficulties in ESG implementation for SMEs and mid-sized companies, the two ministries will jointly operate an online 'ESG Management Support Platform' and prepare an SME-type ESG guideline.

Kang Sung-cheon, Vice Minister of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups / Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Furthermore, to resolve export logistics difficulties, they plan to collaborate on the supplementary budget logistics voucher project, which supports international transportation and local logistics costs. Export support agencies under both ministries will jointly promote nurturing promising small business exporters, attracting overseas investment for startups, and brand-(K) overseas marketing.

They also discussed plans to expand support for the root industry and cooperation support measures for small semiconductor design companies (fabless) and foundries facing difficulties due to semiconductor supply shortages.

While forming an inter-ministerial working-level consultative body to revitalize small-scale distribution logistics, they will also review ways to link and provide additional points between the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ SoBuJang technology development projects and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s reliability-based utilization support projects.

Park Jin-gyu, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, stated, "We will actively support SMEs and mid-sized companies so that they can use new trends such as digital transformation and carbon neutrality as a stepping stone for growth," adding, "We will continuously collaborate to invigorate exports as well."

Kang Sung-chun, Vice Minister of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, said, "We will continuously discover and discuss cooperative tasks in key policy areas and work closely together to make the council beneficial to the development of the Korean economy."

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