[2022 National Audit] "SBC's COVID-19 Support Fund Operation Method, Elderly Exclusion"

Kim Seong-hwan, member of the Democratic Party of Korea.

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghyun Choi] The Small Enterprise and Market Service (SEMAS) has been criticized for excessively focusing on non-face-to-face methods in distributing and managing quarantine support funds and loss compensation funds during the COVID-19 situation, which lowered accessibility for the elderly.

On the 13th, Kim Seonghwan, a member of the National Assembly's Industry, Trade, and Small and Medium Venture Business Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea, revealed this during the SEMAS audit. Kim stated, "The support system for the first and second rounds of quarantine support funds and loss compensation funds for small business owners was operated solely through a government-centered administration that activated only non-face-to-face methods," adding, "As a result, accessibility for the elderly significantly declined, and the group most desperately in need of government support funds did not actually benefit."

According to data submitted to Kim by SEMAS, the acceptance rate of 'disaster support fund appeals'?a procedure allowing businesses notified that they were not eligible after applying for support funds to prove their damages through a separate appeal?sharply decreased as the age group increased. The reason was the focus on operating a non-face-to-face system, which caused most digitally marginalized groups, including the elderly, to experience difficulties during the appeal process, according to Kim's office.

In fact, among the first round of quarantine support fund recipients, the elderly aged 60 and above accounted for 28.1% of all recipients, making them the second-largest age group to benefit from the support funds. However, based on the appeal acceptance rate, they accounted for only 18.67%, showing the largest decline. In contrast, those in their 20s and 30s showed the opposite trend. The first round quarantine support fund payment rates for the 20s and 30s were 2.8% and 13% of all recipients, respectively, making them the least benefited age groups. However, their appeal acceptance rates were 7.39% and 20.27%, respectively, showing the largest increases. This pattern was similarly observed in the second round of quarantine support funds.

Kim emphasized, "These statistics ultimately indicate that a significant number of elderly small business owners failed to enter the system at the appeal stage," adding, "Due to the nature of small businesses, exact sales cannot be confirmed through National Tax Service data, so the appeal process was a desperate procedure for most small business owners, yet the elderly could not properly utilize it."

Kim also pointed out several problems revealed in the on-site visit application process, which was conducted as an alternative to online submissions, after reviewing SEMAS's appeal procedures. According to him, SEMAS operated on-site visit application submissions alongside online applications for small business owners who had difficulties with online applications. However, to apply via on-site visits, prior reservation through the website or dedicated call center was mandatory. The disaster support fund call center's response rate was only 17.2%, meaning 4 out of 5 people could hardly get through. Furthermore, on-site applications were only possible at SEMAS's 70 regional centers nationwide, not at local governments. The limited number of centers significantly reduced physical accessibility. Ultimately, the non-face-to-face application method was criticized as inappropriate as an alternative for the elderly.

Kim stated, "Most small business owners operate small-scale businesses with limited time and environment, and the proportion of elderly is particularly high," adding, "Despite the digital divide being a fully predictable issue, SEMAS designed the system without considering accessibility for digitally marginalized groups at all."

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