Seongdong-gu Leads Efforts to Eliminate Welfare Blind Spots with One Plus One Project

130 Companies Join, Providing 23.8 Million Won Benefits to 2,242 Vulnerable People in 2023
Heartwarming Stories Continue with Meal Sharing for Elderly Living Alone During Seollal Holiday

A Korean restaurant in Seongsu-dong. At this restaurant, which participates in the ‘Seongdong One Plus One’ program, it is often seen that customers pay more than the original price of their meal. After paying, they write their name and the additional amount paid in a notebook placed nearby. The extra money paid is used to provide a warm meal for neighbors in need who visit the restaurant someday.

Seongdong-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Jung Won-oh) announced that it will actively promote the small everyday donation project ‘Seongdong One Plus One’ again this year. The One Plus One project is a voluntary sharing practice led by residents to support vulnerable groups in welfare blind spots outside the formal system. When purchasing one item (or service) at participating businesses, if the buyer pays for one more item than they actually purchase, the extra item is provided as a donation to those in financial difficulty.

After a pilot operation in Yongdap-dong and Songjeong-dong, areas with many multi-family houses, in 2019, the program expanded to seven neighborhoods, and in 2022 it was implemented in all 17 neighborhoods within Seongdong-gu, leading efforts to eliminate welfare blind spots.

Through the One Plus One project, a total of 1,872 donations amounting to approximately 24.6 million KRW were made last year, benefiting 2,242 vulnerable individuals with 23.8 million KRW in support.

Currently, a total of 130 businesses are participating, taking the lead in neighborly sharing.

Heartwarming stories of neighborly kindness continue to emerge through the One Plus One project. A regular customer of a restaurant in Oksu-dong started making monthly fixed donations after the restaurant joined the One Plus One program.

A business in Seongsu-dong participating in the One Plus One project noticed an elderly person wandering around the store and reported it to the local community center to provide assistance, while also offering free lunch daily, leading by example in sharing. There was also a case where a young elementary school student visiting a fast-food restaurant made a small donation after seeing the ‘Seongdong One Plus One’ notice posted inside the store.

Also, the owner ‘B’ of the Korean restaurant ‘H’ in Seongsu-dong, now in the third year of participating in the One Plus One project, decided to open the store on Lunar New Year’s Day this year. This was in the hope that elderly people living alone, who face financial difficulties, could feel some warmth of the holiday with a bowl of rice cake soup during the unusually long Lunar New Year holiday due to substitute holidays.

Jung Won-oh, Mayor of Seongdong-gu, said, "For neighbors in welfare blind spots outside the formal system, the interest and sharing of local residents nearby are a great strength," and added, "We ask for continued interest and participation in the Seongdong One Plus One project."

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