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Image credit: The Korea Times

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups said on Tuesday that the amount spent on purchasing products from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by public agencies in 2023 hit a historic high of 127.3 trillion won ($93 billion). This figure surpasses the initial target of 118.4 trillion won by 7.5 percent.

Under the “Act to Promote SMEs and Encourage Purchases of Their Products,” 854 public agencies, including government agencies, local governments, educational institutions, public enterprises, and local medical institutions, are obligated to spend 50 percent of their total procurement budget with SME products.

Twenty institutions, including Daejeon Metropolitan Office of Education, the Ministry of Education, and Goyang Special City in Gyeonggi Province, were selected as “Excellent Purchasers of SME Products” by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.

Among them, Daejeon Metropolitan Office of Education increased its SME product purchases by 42 percent (around 150 billion won) compared to the previous year, while the Ministry of Education increased its purchases by 27 percent (around 290 billion won).

Source: https://pulsenews.co.kr/view.php?sc=30800028&year=2024&no=302013