Fresh managers from hy (formerly Korea Yakult), who deliver dairy products door to door every morning, will begin serving this month as 'welfare watchdogs' looking out for residents who fall through the cracks of the welfare system in Yeongjong-gu, Incheon. Yeongjong-gu District (Mayor Son Hwa-jeong) said it signed a business agreement with hy's Yeongjong branch (Branch Manager Shin Jae-seop) in a small conference room at the district office on the afternoon of the 8th and appointed 16 fresh managers from the branch as 'Yeongjong-gu Neighbors.'
 [The Korean Today] hy Yeongjong branch fresh managers appointed as 'Yeongjong-gu Neighbors' © Reporter Kim Mi-hee |
Under the agreement, the 16 fresh managers will serve as 'Yeongjong-gu Neighbors' from October this year through July 2028. Yeongjong-gu Neighbors serve as a kind of 'honorary social welfare official' and form a local social welfare safety net built jointly by the public and private sectors.
Their duties are tied to their delivery work. On their daily rounds, they will check on vulnerable residents and notify the district's welfare department when they find households in crisis that are at risk of isolation or dying alone. Reported households will be connected to public support. The fresh managers will also take part in campaigns to prevent social isolation.
The district chose the fresh managers because of the way they work. Because they make daily rounds through the same neighborhoods at set times, they are well placed to notice small changes in residents. Given this, the district expects the fresh managers to play a key role in identifying welfare-crisis households early, including people at risk of loneliness and isolation. The district's view is that for local authorities to reach households that need help but cannot ask for it themselves, it needs the eyes of residents on the ground in everyday life.
At the appointment ceremony, Mayor Son personally presented letters of appointment to the fresh managers. Son urged them to take pride in their role as honorary social welfare officials and to participate actively.
 [The Korean Today] Business agreement and Neighbors appointment ceremony between Yeongjong-gu and hy Yeongjong branch © Reporter Kim Mi-hee |
"It is reassuring that the fresh managers, who communicate with residents at the closest range, are joining us as key players in caring for their neighbors," Son said. "In keeping with the new Yeongjong era, we will build a tight safety net with no gaps in welfare coverage."
The 'Yeongjong-gu Neighbors' program was created with the launch of Yeongjong-gu under the ninth popularly elected local government term. It operates as an honorary social welfare official system in which residents themselves identify households in crisis that fall through the cracks of the welfare system, including low-income households and those living in reclusion or isolation, and connect them to support.
Currently, 150 residents who live or work in the district's six dong neighborhoods are taking part as the 'first cohort of Yeongjong-gu Neighbors.' Members include people from major local organizations, workers in everyday service businesses, mandatory reporters, members of the delinquent-payment management team and the neighbor connection team.
With the addition of the 16 fresh managers under this agreement, the number of Yeongjong-gu Neighbors has reached 166. The district expects that with more people active across residents' daily lives, it will be able to build and run a tighter social safety net.
[ Reporter Kim Mi-hee: incheonsouth@thekoreantoday.com ]
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