Han Seong-suk: "If possible, resolve small business policy improvements as soon as possible"

[Financial News] Han Seong-suk, Minister of SMEs and Startups, held her first official meeting with small business owners after taking office and stated, "I will listen to the vivid voices from the field, materialize them, reflect them in policy, and resolve issues that can be improved as soon as possible."
Minister Han said at the 'Relay Meeting for Small Business Recovery and Safety Net Enhancement' held at the Seoul Jungbu Small Business Support Center on this day, "I will make sure that the policy becomes a practical solution that lives and breathes in your reality beyond the framework of a report," she said.
Minister Han said, "I have been working at the forefront of the information technology (IT) industry for the past 30 years, bridging technology and people," and "I will now connect policies, small and medium enterprises, and small businesses as the Minister of SMEs."
She continued, "We may not be able to break the crisis with policy alone, but we must strive to ensure that SME policies can serve as a primer," adding, "I believe that taxpayers should be able to receive benefits in return. I will listen to opinions on where it would be best to use them while discussing together."
This relay meeting is a measure to implement the first policy task emphasized by Minister Han since her candidacy, 'Recovery and Safety Net Construction for Small Businesses.' The Ministry of SMEs plans to hold a total of 10 relay meetings over about two months on topics such as financial safety nets, crisis safety nets, and closure/restart safety nets.
Minister Han explained the reason for setting the meeting theme as 'Recovery and Safety Net Enhancement for Small Businesses,' saying, "The key to overcoming the crisis facing our economy is the recovery and stabilization of small businesses, which are the center of people's livelihoods," adding, "We must now break the vicious cycle of crises surrounding small businesses."
In particular, the Ministry of SMEs plans to announce small business policy tasks at each meeting. At the Daejeon Town Hall meeting held on the 4th, a small business owner requested a policy to favor diligent payers, and the Ministry of SMEs reflected this by announcing the 'Diligent Payment Incentive Plan' at the meeting on this day.
At the meeting, the small business industry requested the Ministry of SMEs to alleviate the financial burden on small businesses and to reform the disaster insurance.
Song Chi-young, president of the Small Business Federation, said, "We must actively pursue lowering the interest rate for small business owners currently repaying loans to the initial loan level," adding, "I think it is not just about debt forgiveness but giving those enduring the crisis a chance to restart."
Lee Chung-hwan, president of the National Merchants Federation, said, "It is a problem that if you receive disaster-related support from the government, you cannot receive disaster insurance benefits," adding, "It is an irrational structure where you can only receive one of the two, so we need to reorganize this part so that more people can join disaster insurance and receive proper benefits."
Meanwhile, the 2nd and 3rd meetings for small businesses are scheduled to be held in the 1st and 2nd weeks of August, respectively, with the themes of crisis safety nets and closure/restart safety nets.

stand@fnnews.com Seo Ji-yoon Choi Hye-rim Reporter