To improve the welfare of foreign laborers, the Gyeonggi-do government announced on Mar. 26 that three welfare centers would be built until 2006. 

According to this announcement, provincial government funding of 1.5 billion won will be used for the ‘Seongnam Welfare Center for Migrants (tentative name)’ that will open in Sept. this year. 

This center is being made on 201 pyeong land once owned by a church in Taepyeong-dong, Sujeong-gu, Seongnam. After remodeling work are completed, foreign workers may come to learn Korean and Korean culture, receive medical care, and eat in the cafeteria and other facilities like the computer room. 

In the same matter, two more centers will additionally be built and a total of 3 billion won is expected to be promoted for the construction. 

The northern welfare center will be built on a 300 pyeong construction site contributed by a private organization. 

Actual construction will start late this year after planning are settled and the opening of the center is expected to be late in 2006. 

A local tripartite commission will be held to discuss about the building site and planning of the northern foreigner welfare center. 

The southern welfare center is also planned to open in late 2006 at the latest. 

Results of the research on ‘Influence, issue and countermeasure of enforcing the new employment permit system for alien workers’ is expected to come out late next month. And the Gyeonggi-do government plans to positively unfold a support project and also build a welfare center for foreigners. 

About 144,000 foreign laborers are currently working in Ansan, Pocheon, Hwaseong and other parts of Gyeonggi-do. 

Source: Kyeongin Ilbo, March 27, 2004