22 Public Institutions Gather at Beijing 'K-Maru' to Support Korean Businesses and Expats as 'One Team'

The opening ceremony for "K-Maru" was held at the POSCO Center in Beijing, China, on November 2, local time.

Combining "K," which symbolizes South Korea, and "Maru," a traditional Korean term for a wooden floor or central living space, "K-Maru" serves as an integrated support hub providing public services such as trade, investment, finance, energy, digital technology, and more to South Korean companies and expatriates operating in China.

It is the first public-private cooperative overseas public platform that combines business facilities owned by the private company POSCO Holdings with the government's public support capabilities.

The initiative is designed to allow users to efficiently access a wide range of services in one place by bringing together the overseas infrastructure of private enterprises and the business support functions of public institutions.

[Lee Sangyun / Director General for Public Policy, Ministry of Economy and Finance: Public expectations for public services are rising. As challenges that are difficult to resolve through the efforts of a single institution alone continue to increase, collaboration among institutions has now become essential.]

A total of 22 South Korean public institutions will gather at "K-Maru."

Currently, 8 institutions—including KOTRA, the Export-Import Bank of Korea, the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation, and the Korea Intellectual Property Protection Agency—have already moved in.

Four more institutions, such as the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation and the Korea Mine Rehabilitation and Mineral Resources Corporation, are scheduled to move in before the end of this year, followed by 8 additional institutions, including Korea Electric Power Corporation and the Korea Institute of Design Promotion, next year.

By bringing together various institutions that were previously scattered across Beijing, the hub is expected to enhance the efficiency of business support while reducing administrative costs associated with operating overseas offices for public institutions.

[Noh Jae-heon / South Korean Ambassador to China: Going beyond the combination of physical space, we must become a problem-solving 'one team' where the professional capabilities and accumulated information of each institution are organically integrated to listen to voices from the field and find practical solutions.]

The government stated that the role of the public sector is even more critical in overseas fields, adding that it will actively leverage its expertise and networks to respond effectively.

(Photo: Yonhap News)

Reported by Choi Go-un | Video by Yang A-ta | Edited by Choi Jin-hwa | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.