Gyeonggi Province Expands 'Geunyangdream' Support for Food and Essentials to 31 Cities and Counties

Gyeonggi Province will expand the "Geunyangdream Project," which provides food and daily necessities unconditionally to residents facing financial hardship, to cover all 31 cities and counties in the province in the second half of this year.

Gyeonggi Province announced on the 18th that, with the conclusion of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Geunyangdream Project—which had previously been suspended—was adopted as an official program this year and is currently being implemented at 26 locations across 20 cities and counties within the province. The province plans to expand the project to 48 locations in all 31 cities and counties in the second half of the year.

This year, Gyeonggi Province will invest a total of 2,317 million won in the project, including 1,158 million won from the national government, 588 million won from provincial funds, and 569 million won from city and county funds.

Geunjadream Business

Any provincial resident facing financial difficulties can receive basic food items—such as instant rice, soup, and side dishes—up to a limit of 20,000 won per person (approximately five items) by simply presenting an ID at a Geunyangdream Corner operated by food banks or markets, without the need for complicated application procedures or income verification.

During the first visit, only minimal personal information is collected, and items are provided unconditionally. From the second visit onward, counseling is offered to closely connect public assistance programs such as emergency welfare and basic livelihood support, as well as private welfare services, thus establishing a robust welfare safety net.

In the preceding pilot project, 15,205 residents utilized the service.

Han Kyungsoo, Director of Welfare Projects at Gyeonggi Province, stated, "We are very proud that the Geunyangdream Project, which guarantees the basic right to food for vulnerable groups in Gyeonggi Province, has become a nationwide model. We will do our utmost to ensure that Gyeonggi-style customized models are exemplary across all 31 cities and counties, so that welfare blind spots within the province can be completely eradicated."

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