Residents Shape Their Own Neighborhood Welfare in Seodaemun-gu

A head of kimchi made during the winter kimchi-making season connects marriage immigrants with their neighbors, while monthly food packages double as welfare checks on middle-aged residents living alone.

Because the hardships residents face differ from neighborhood to neighborhood, so do their welfare needs. Residents across Seodaemun-gu's 14 neighborhoods have identified the welfare challenges in their own communities and developed solutions they plan to put into practice over the next four years.

Seodaemun-gu announced Sunday that the community social security councils in each of its 14 neighborhoods had identified neighborhood-specific welfare agendas to be pursued from 2027 to 2030, based on local characteristics and residents' needs.

The defining feature of this round of welfare agenda-setting is that it was not driven by the district administration handing down programs to residents. Instead, residents themselves deliberated on what difficulties exist in their neighborhoods, who needs help, and what can be done locally — then chose the projects they would carry out.

The neighborhood community social security councils are civilian-public cooperative organizations that identify vulnerable neighbors and connect residents with welfare agencies and local resources.

The agendas that emerged reflect the demographic makeup and welfare needs of each neighborhood, taking on distinct forms from one community to the next.

Yeonhui-dong focused on helping marriage immigrants settle into the community and build relationships with neighbors. Through a program centered on making kimchi together, marriage immigrants and local residents prepare kimchi during the winter kimchi-making season and share it with those in need. The core idea goes beyond a simple kimchi handout — it is about forging connections within the community for both those who make it and those who receive it.

Hongje 3-dong addresses both meals and welfare checks for low-income middle-aged residents living alone. Through a program called "Hongsam Healthy Table," a food package worth 30,000 won ($22) is delivered once a month, with community social security council members also checking in on recipients' daily lives. Rather than a one-time handout, the program offers regular contact to keep a close eye on households at risk — a form of welfare woven into everyday life.

Bukgajwa 2-dong runs a health and culture club focused on building social networks between elderly residents and the broader community. Low-income seniors and local residents take part together in health, cultural and hobby programs and club activities, helping them naturally form neighborly bonds.

Solutions to social isolation also varied by neighborhood. Sinchon-dong developed a program that shares kimchi with low-income and isolated or reclusive young people as a way to draw them into community participation, while Hongje 1-dong created a home safety project to prevent falls and fires among isolated single-person households, alongside a relationship-building initiative using companion plants. Namgajwa 1-dong is pursuing a year-round outreach program that visits isolated middle-aged households to check on their wellbeing and offer counseling.

Other neighborhoods also built their programs around welfare needs residents identified on the ground. Chunghyeon-dong supports meals and dental health for low-income elderly people living alone and for middle-aged residents, while Cheonyeon-dong delivers food packages to young and middle-aged single-person households living in goshiwon rooms. Bukahyeon-dong and Hongeun 1-dong both look after meals and wellbeing for elderly people living alone and middle-aged single-person households.

Hongeun 2-dong supports outings to local attractions for low-income children and teenagers who lack adequate care, while Hongje 2-dong helps single-parent and grandparent-headed families eat healthily. Namgajwa 2-dong provides seasonal kimchi to elderly residents living alone, and Bukgajwa 1-dong will use a café on the first floor of the neighborhood community center to create a communal space where residents aged 75 and older can meet and socialize with neighbors.

These agendas took shape at a community welfare agenda workshop held Thursday at the district office's sixth-floor auditorium. About 120 people participated — including members of the 14 neighborhood community social security councils and representatives from local welfare agencies — sharing welfare challenges by area, setting priorities and selecting initiatives that can realistically be carried out in each community.

The agendas residents identified will not remain one-off ideas. They will serve as foundational material for the community welfare plan covering the four years starting next year, and will be developed into concrete projects tailored to each neighborhood's conditions and residents' needs.

Seodaemun-gu aims to move beyond a model in which the public sector determines and delivers services to residents, toward a "resident-participatory welfare safety net" in which residents themselves spot their neighbors' difficulties and work together to solve them by connecting people and resources within the community.

"Residents who live in a neighborhood know best what welfare it needs," District Mayor Park Un-gi said. "The strength of Seodaemun's community welfare lies in residents looking out for their neighbors and building solutions together."