On the 20th, the Korea SMEs & Startups Institute (KOSI) announced '30 policy tasks for small business owners,' including strengthening support for industries closely linked to daily life, securing capabilities for digital transformation, and revitalizing commercial districts in connection with local tourism.
On the same day, the Korea SMEs & Startups Institute (KOSI) held a symposium themed 'Revitalizing the economy through enhanced support for small business owners' and proposed structural policy directions to enhance the sustainability of small businesses.
Jeong Su-jeong, head of the Small Business and Win-Win Research Office at the Korea SMEs & Startups Institute (KOSI), divided the policies into six major areas: strengthening the authority of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups regarding industries closely linked to daily life, securing capabilities for digital transformation, revitalizing commercial districts in connection with local tourism, expanding social safety nets, reorganizing the collaboration structure with large companies, and proposed 30 detailed tasks.
These include the establishment of the special law for fostering small business distribution companies, support for designing plans to recover the debt repayment capacity of small business owners, AI-based customized digital transformation support, building an integrated operating system for Onnuri and local love gift certificates, fostering foreign tourist commercial districts in cooperation with local governments, mandatory enrollment of small business owners in employment insurance and modification of the system based on sales, and creating a local ecosystem centered on anchor small businesses.
At the symposium, experts including Lee Jeong-hee, a professor at Chung-Ang University, Wi Pyeong-ryang, a policy member of the Economic Improvement Alliance, Yoo Byeong-jun, a professor at Seoul National University, Son Seong-won, Deputy Minister of the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises, Cha Nam-soo, head of the Small Business Association, and Lee Young-hye, a lawyer at Banwoo Law Firm, attended to explore ways to restore the competitiveness of small business owners threatened by a complex economic crisis characterized by high prices, high interest rates, and reduced consumption.
Koh Joo-hyun, president of the Korea SMEs & Startups Institute (KOSI), said, "Small business owners are facing severe management pressures due to reduced consumption, debt burdens following COVID-19, and an increase in business closures," adding, "To overcome this crisis, it is urgent to activate domestic demand, alleviate the burdens on small business owners, and formulate strategies for selective support and growth based on capabilities."
He went on to say, "The Korea SMEs & Startups Institute (KOSI) will derive practical policy alternatives through communication with various stakeholders and contribute to strengthening the foundation for the recovery of the economy."