The Ministry of SMEs and Startups said on the 5th that it held a launch ceremony for the "public-private policy council for SMEs, startups, and small merchants" at the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises in Yeouido.
The public-private policy council is a venue to gather input from private experts to review policy tasks already released by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) and to identify new ones. It is composed of 72 Commissioners from business, private experts, academia, and others, and will operate for one year from the launch date. Minister Han Seong-sook of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) and former National Assembly Secretary General Lee Kwang-jae will serve as co-chairs to lead the public-private policy council.
Before the launch ceremony that day, Commissioners directly proposed more than 50 policy ideas, and, by subcommittee, suggested key policy tasks such as SME growth and accelerating the transition to artificial intelligence (AI), revitalizing venture investment and the KOSDAQ market, and AI education for small merchants. At the subcommittee meetings, they discussed the tasks proposed by the Commissioners and agenda items for each subcommittee, and plan to flesh out key policy tasks through regular subcommittee meetings going forward.
Co-chair Lee Kwang-jae noted, "To achieve a true leap forward in the SME and startup ecosystem, we will discuss together at the public-private policy council five key tasks: overcoming the Peter Pan syndrome, introducing an immediate payment system for delivery settlements, attracting venture investment funds such as from pension funds, preventing technology theft, and shifting from a subsidy-dependent structure to an investment-centered virtuous-cycle economy."
Minister Han Seong-sook of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) said, "I hope private-sector experts will convey the voices from the field without filters at the public-private policy council."
She added, "In this era of an AI great transition, please also share candid views on what the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) is currently weighing, including a paradigm shift in SME policy and overhauling support programs to focus on growth and outcomes," and, "We will carefully review the ideas that come out of the public-private policy council and, if necessary, consult with the relevant ministries."