Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, the Financial Services Commission, the Korea Inclusive Finance Agency, the Credit Counseling and Recovery Service, and Shinhan Bank signed a memorandum of understanding Monday to support low-income and vulnerable residents in Gangwon Province and strengthen community-based integrated assistance.
The MOU covers four areas: inter-agency cooperation for community-based integrated support, infrastructure assistance and education and public outreach to expand mobile outreach services, the establishment of a public-private joint center, and the launch of specialized financial products.
The signing ceremony, held recently in Seoul, was attended by Gangwon Province Governor Woo Sang-ho, FSC Chairman Lee Eok-won, Korea Inclusive Finance Agency President Kim Eun-kyung — who also serves as chair of the Credit Counseling and Recovery Service — and Shinhan Bank President Jeong Sang-hyeok.
The agreement was designed to help low-income and vulnerable residents achieve genuine economic independence by linking financial assistance with employment and welfare services, while also improving access for Gangwon residents who face difficulties using financial services due to the province's vast geography.
The FSC has since 2024 been rolling out an integrated support program that connects policy-based inclusive finance and debt restructuring with employment and welfare services. The program currently operates at 52 integrated inclusive finance support centers nationwide.
Gangwon Province, however, covers roughly 30 times the land area of Seoul yet has only four such centers. While the province's population is about 16 percent of Seoul's, the number of residents connected to integrated support services stands at just 10 percent of Seoul's figure — a gap that has prompted calls for a stronger support framework tailored to the region's characteristics.
Under the MOU, the signatory institutions will work to establish a Gangwon Inclusive Finance Integrated Support Center, where residents can access both government integrated support programs and private financial services in one place.
The center will bring together the Korea Inclusive Finance Agency, the Credit Counseling and Recovery Service, and private financial institutions to provide one-stop counseling and referrals covering policy-based inclusive finance, debt restructuring, employment, welfare, and private financial services.
The aim is to spare residents the inconvenience of visiting multiple agencies and to connect them more quickly with financial, employment, and welfare services suited to their individual circumstances, helping those facing compounded hardships get back on their feet.
A mobile outreach service will also be expanded for residents who have difficulty visiting the center in person.
FSC Chairman Lee Eok-won said balanced regional development "is not a choice or a favor — it is an essential strategy for South Korea's survival and sustained growth," adding that the FSC would "continue working to ensure that every citizen, regardless of where they live, can fully and more attentively benefit from integrated support."
Lee also pledged to "work consistently and carefully with partner agencies so that vulnerable residents in Gangwon Province can stand back up as proud members of society through the ladder of hope that integrated support provides."
Governor Woo Sang-ho said the difficulties facing vulnerable residents "cannot be resolved by addressing financial problems alone," and expressed hope that the agreement — which links finance with employment and welfare to support genuine economic independence — would serve as "a solid foundation for struggling residents to get back on their feet."
Woo added that the province would "strengthen outreach counseling and public awareness efforts so that no resident misses out on support simply because they were unaware of it, and actively back the initiative so that people can feel its real benefits on the ground."
Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province will work with its 18 cities and counties to identify counseling demand in advance and provide the necessary conditions, including venues, while inclusive finance institutions will visit communities directly to offer comprehensive counseling and referrals covering inclusive finance, debt restructuring, and employment and welfare services.
In addition, the parties plan to strengthen mutual training and joint outreach between welfare officers at community service centers and inclusive finance counselors, reducing gaps in coverage so that no resident misses out on a good program simply because they did not know it existed.
Through the partnership with Shinhan Bank, the parties will develop financial products tailored to Gangwon's regional characteristics — including preferential interest rates for integrated support users — and build a financial ladder to help low-income and vulnerable residents establish themselves within the formal financial system and build assets.
The initiative aims to give financially vulnerable residents in the region access to better terms on financial products and a foundation for asset building, supporting their transition into the mainstream financial system.
Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province said it will continue to improve policy accessibility so that residents are not left behind due to where they live or a lack of information, and will keep identifying support measures for low-income and vulnerable residents suited to local conditions.
Korea Inclusive Finance Agency President Kim Eun-kyung said the community-based integrated support agreement "will be a meaningful example of public-private cooperation extending from Yeongnam and Honam all the way to Gangwon Province," and pledged to "reach out first to vulnerable residents in the region so they can recover and stand back up without their daily lives falling apart, realizing the value of finance that saves lives."
Shinhan Bank President Jeong Sang-hyeok said he was honored to join the integrated support agreement, which he said would provide more practical help to low-income and vulnerable residents in Gangwon Province. "We will fulfill our responsibility as a private financial institution to practice inclusive finance and actively support customers in enjoying finance that is easier and more accessible," he added.
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