Prime Minister Han Seung-soo stated on August 12 that "the new leap for a growing South Korea cannot be achieved solely through a few key new industries," adding that "regulatory innovation will be a key driving force in creating a virtuous cycle where the fruits of growth are widely distributed to small and medium enterprises (SMEs)."
Han, a former Minister of SMEs and Startups, chaired her first regulatory roundtable for SMEs at the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Businesses in Yeouido, Seoul. The event gathered 120 participants, including representatives from the SME sector and deputy ministers from relevant government departments.
The government plans to establish a 'Startup Venture Regulatory Innovation Committee' under the Regulatory Rationalization Committee. This dedicated body will focus on identifying and addressing issues in new industries and technologies that require improvement or have conflicting interests.
Han emphasized that "regulatory improvement goes beyond resolving individual complaints; it is about considering what is necessary for the growth of the entire industry." She pledged to actively utilize the Regulatory Rationalization Committee and other resources to ensure ongoing attention to these issues.
The roundtable featured three sessions focused on new industries and innovation, SME growth, and field-specific proposals, addressing 14 key issues.
The government proposed the establishment of a regulatory sandbox law that mandates the creation of legal reform plans when granting regulatory exceptions, along with plans for a unified support center. It also aims to temporarily allow data scraping related to the right to request personal data transfer under the Personal Information Protection Act.
During the SME growth session, discussions included expanding SME participation in government mega-projects, identifying key items for localization in materials, parts, and equipment, and introducing a public sector payment linkage system. The government also decided to ease the requirements for designating special districts in local industrial complexes to support a variety of industries.
Other topics included excluding the pregnancy and maternity periods of female CEOs from the calculation of startup support periods, revitalizing small manufacturers of construction materials, and expanding the types of rental cars available for small business owners.
Han concluded by stating, "We cannot solve everything at once, but we will improve things step by step, starting with what we can change."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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