Gyeonggi Province Invests 2.3 Billion Won in Provincial Budget for Eco-Friendly Agricultural Products for Pregnant Women

[Suwon Ilbo=Park No-hun] Gyeonggi Province will accept applications for the 'Gyeonggi Pregnant Women Eco-Friendly Agricultural Products Support' program, which it is implementing as its own project this year, from February 1st to 28th.

The 'Pregnant Women Eco-Friendly Agricultural Products Support Project' was conducted as a pilot program by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs for three years from 2020 to 2022, but faced discontinuation this year as it was not reflected in the government budget.

However, Gyeonggi Province separately secured 2.3 billion won in provincial budget (5.4 billion won in city and county funds) through its own sources to support 20,000 beneficiaries.

Among all provincial governments nationwide, Gyeonggi Province is the only one implementing the pregnant women eco-friendly agricultural products support project with its own budget despite the discontinuation of the national subsidy project.

Applicants must have their residence in one of the 31 cities and counties within the province, be pregnant at the time of application, or be mothers who gave birth on or after January 1, 2022. If the number of applicants exceeds capacity, 20,000 recipients will be selected through a drawing.

Pregnant women wishing to apply can apply online through EcoemAll (www.ecoemall.com) with supporting documents such as birth certificates and pregnancy verification certificates, or visit their respective eup, myeon, or dong community centers to apply.

Selected beneficiaries can place orders until November 30th, and each person can receive deliveries of eco-friendly agricultural products worth approximately 480,000 won by paying 20% out-of-pocket and ordering 1 to 4 times per month.

Kim Chung-beom, Director of the Provincial Agriculture, Food, Forestry and Fisheries and Biotechnology Bureau, stated, "This project has received very high satisfaction from pregnant women, and the province secured its own budget for them despite difficult financial circumstances," and added, "We will make efforts to provide additional support through supplementary budgets if the number of applications exceeds expectations."