Gwanak-gu has been selected for a competitive grant program supporting socially isolated households at risk, organized by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and sponsored by KMI Korea Medical Institute.
The program invites local governments to propose tailored initiatives reflecting the characteristics of their communities, with the aim of proactively identifying and preventing social isolation and solitary death, and building a flexible, comprehensive response system for at-risk households through partnerships with cooperating organizations.
Gwanak-gu was named among the seven local governments chosen nationwide, again demonstrating its strong welfare capabilities in isolation prevention and in reaching those who fall through the cracks of the social safety net.
As a result of the selection, the district has secured the full 65 million won ($43,800) designated donation from KMI Korea Medical Institute — channeled through the Community Chest of Korea — as its project budget, and plans to formally launch the "Knock-Knock Safety Net Support Project" in the second half of 2026 to help isolated households reconnect with daily life.
The private funding carries particular significance because it can be deployed more flexibly than existing public systems to reach those who fall outside the conventional welfare safety net. The district plans to use the KMI Korea Medical Institute donation to provide tailored services to isolated households that are either excluded from existing public support or have exceeded assistance limits, while strengthening a community-based response system built on public-private cooperation.
The Knock-Knock Safety Net Support Project aims to help reclusive and isolated households at risk — including those targeted under solitary-death prevention programs — stabilize their daily lives and build social networks. For households that need private-sector resources to supplement the limits of public support, the project will pursue daily-life recovery programs, welfare check-ins, stronger public-private cooperation and medical expense linkage.
Private partner organizations, including comprehensive social welfare centers, will identify eligible individuals, who will then be reviewed and confirmed by the Gwanak-gu Community Social Security Council. The district plans to provide ongoing follow-up management for selected households, ensuring that support does not end as a one-time intervention but instead helps residents build stable lives within the community over the long term.
Gwanak-gu was the first district in Seoul to establish the "Isolation Prevention Council," a public-private partnership body bringing together the district office, police, welfare centers, public rental apartment management offices and the Korea Licensed Real Estate Agents Association to identify and support socially isolated households at risk. The district has also won awards for three consecutive years in the solitary-death prevention and management category of the Ministry of Health and Welfare's regional welfare project evaluation, earning recognition for its solitary-death prevention policy.
"This selection is the result of our community coming together to find and help neighbors who are marginalized and isolated," Gwanak-gu District Mayor Park Jun-hee said. "We will continue to strengthen public-private cooperation to help isolated households quickly rebuild their daily lives, and work toward completing a sustainable, community-centered care safety net where not a single person is left behind."
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