‘OB wa YB mannada’ ‘Jangbaguni nanuja’ etc... Gangbuk-gu announces results of one-person household support idea contest

Awarding a total of 5 proposals: 2 from residents and 3 from employees... Reflected in the 2024 Single-Person Household Contest Project and Single-Person Household Support Center Programs

Gangbuk-gu, Seoul (Mayor Lee Soon-hee) announced the results of the One-Person Household Support Idea Contest held to discover diverse and creative support projects for single-person households.

A total of five ideas were selected as winners in the contest: two from the resident proposal category and three from the staff proposal category. Among these, three ideas received Excellence Awards, and two received Encouragement Awards.

In the resident proposal category, the winners were ▲ Gangbuk Style! OB and YB Meet (Excellence, total score 430) and ▲ Gangbuk-gu Approaches You Directly for Difficult Times! (Encouragement, total score 339). In the staff proposal category, the winning ideas were ▲ Not Eating Alone but Eating Together (Excellence, total score 462), ▲ Let's Share the Shopping Basket (Excellence, total score 440), and ▲ Late Night Restaurant After Work (Encouragement, total score 339).

Previously, the district held the contest from June 26 to July 31 on the theme of resolving inconveniences faced by single-person households. A total of 53 ideas (24 from residents and 29 from Gangbuk-gu employees) related to support policies for single-person households in four areas?safety, care, loneliness, and housing?were received. After preliminary review by relevant departments and internal evaluation, seven ideas were selected as finalists.

On September 4, the final evaluation was conducted, comprehensively assessing the necessity, effectiveness, feasibility, creativity, and concreteness of the seven ideas, resulting in the selection of five winning entries. The final judging panel included four external members: professors from the Department of Social Welfare at Sungshin Women’s University and Seoul Cyber University, and heads of single-person household support centers from Gangbuk-gu and Gwangjin-gu.

The resident Excellence Award went to ‘Gangbuk Style! OB and YB Meet,’ a program where young and middle-aged single-person households explore local attractions and engage in activities such as exercise together.

The staff Excellence Awards were given to ‘Let's Share the Shopping Basket,’ a joint purchase and sharing support project for single-person household food ingredients, and ‘Not Eating Alone but Eating Together,’ a program fostering meals and relationship-building among single-person households by neighborhood.

Additionally, the resident Encouragement Award was given to ‘Gangbuk-gu Approaches You Directly for Difficult Times!,’ a support program for single-person households and vulnerable groups, and the staff Encouragement Award went to ‘Late Night Restaurant After Work,’ which provides meal support for single-person households residing in Gangbuk-gu.

Going forward, the district plans to award prize money to the five winners who proposed creative ideas, and the selected ideas will be incorporated into single-person household contest projects and support center programs starting next year. However, specific details of the projects may be subject to change during implementation.

Lee Soon-hee, Mayor of Gangbuk-gu, stated, “We will actively review the creative ideas proposed by residents and staff to ensure they can be realized as projects next year,” adding, “As we approach an era of 10 million single-person households, Gangbuk-gu will continue to introduce support projects that align with the times.”

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