Mapo District Becomes First Among Seoul’s Wards to Launch ‘Filial Piety Funerals’... Supporting Final Farewells for the Unclaimed Dead

Establishing a Public-Private Partnership System

Agreement Signed with Welfare Foundation and Celebrity Volunteer Group

Mapo District in Seoul (Mayor Park Kangsoo) will be the first among Seoul’s district offices to support 'filial piety funerals' for deceased individuals without relatives and for those from low-income backgrounds.

According to funeral service statistics from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the number of people in Seoul who died without any relatives increased from 670 in 2020 to 1,396 in 2024, more than doubling in four years. As the number of people dying alone rises rapidly, there is a growing call to address gaps in the public funeral safety net.

At the Filial Funeral Business Agreement Ceremony, Mayor Kangsoo Park of Mapo District Office and attendees are taking a commemorative photo. Courtesy of Mapo District Office.

In response to this situation, Mapo District will officially launch the filial piety funeral project, wherein the district mayor and others will serve as honorary chief mourners to ensure a dignified farewell and memorial time for the deceased. Departing from the traditional 'direct cremation or burial' method (where the body is cremated or buried immediately without ceremony), the district will provide a dedicated memorial space so that the deceased can be respected in their final moments.

To this end, on March 18, the district signed a business agreement to establish a public-private partnership funeral support system with the Mapo Welfare Foundation and the Happiness Sharing Celebrity Volunteer Group. Attendees at the signing ceremony included Park Kangsoo, Mayor of Mapo District; Kim Eunyoung, Chairperson of the Mapo Welfare Foundation; and Yoon Jaewoon, CEO, and Cho Younggu, Chairperson of the Celebrity Volunteer Group.

Under the agreement, Mapo District will be responsible for receiving advance directives from eligible individuals and providing administrative support. The Mapo Welfare Foundation will handle counseling for relatives, determine eligibility for support, and assist with funeral expenses. The Celebrity Volunteer Group will oversee the entire funeral process, from setting up the memorial space to preparing the body, encoffining, and transporting the remains. Funeral rites will also be arranged in accordance with the deceased’s religious beliefs.

The program is intended for individuals who die without relatives, those whose relatives refuse or avoid claiming the body, recipients of basic living subsidies, and other low-income individuals who cannot afford funeral expenses. Applications can be submitted at the local community centers. The agreement will be in effect until December 31 of next year, and will automatically renew unless there is a request for termination.

Park Kangsoo, Mayor of Mapo District, stated, “The name ‘filial piety funeral’ reflects our warm intention to become the deceased’s final family and preserve their dignity until the end,” adding, “Mapo District, together with the Mapo Welfare Foundation and the Celebrity Volunteer Group, will be a reliable companion on the deceased’s final journey.”

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