Taejin Kim of Gwangju Seo-gu Council: "Meal Assistants Must Be Deployed in Senior Centers"

"Seo-gu, Average of 4.2 Meal Services per Week"

On October 27, Taejin Kim, a member of the Gwangju Seo-gu Council, announced that during the third plenary session of the 334th extraordinary meeting held on October 24, he delivered a five-minute speech stating, "Meal assistants must be fully deployed in senior centers that are currently providing meals on their own."

Taejin Kim, Member of Gwangju Seo-gu Council. Provided by Seo-gu Council

Kim pointed out, "Currently, Gwangju ranks third among 17 metropolitan cities and provinces, with senior centers providing meals an average of 4.4 days per week. In Seo-gu, the average is 4.2 days."

He added, "In 2024, meal assistants were dispatched, but due to changes in the 2025 guidelines, jobs at senior centers were not offered as social service positions. Instead, environmental assistants were sent as public interest positions, which caused significant dissatisfaction on site."

He further argued, "On site, people either managed meals on their own without meal assistants or had to buy food. Next year, meal assistants should be dispatched as social service positions, not public interest positions, and related budgets and policies must be provided together."

Meanwhile, Kim stated, "By deploying meal assistants, we will strengthen the support system so that seniors can enjoy more hygienic and safer meals," adding, "We will continue to develop senior centers as hubs for senior welfare and health care."

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