Centenarians residing in Mapo to receive a million won celebrating their longevity starting next year

Park Kang-soo (right), district mayor of Mapo-gu, delivers “longevity canes” to senior citizens in the district who turned a hundred years old on October 26. Courtesy of Mapo-gu

Mapo-gu announced that the district would hand out a million won to residents over the age of a hundred to celebrate their longevity beginning next year.

According to an ordinance on the payment of the longevity gift, enacted in July, residents who have resided in Mapo for three or more consecutive years will be eligible for the gift.

Residents can apply for the one-time gift at their neighborhood community service center within a year from their birth month. Thus if you are currently a hundred years old or older, you must apply by December 31. The application can be made in person or entrusted to a family member.

At present, there are 52 residents in Mapo who are a hundred years old and older, and among them 48 have lived in the district for more than three years and are eligible for the gift.

A Mapo-gu official explained that the district office would send out individual notices to the eligible residents by the end of the year and added, “Starting next year, we plan to advertise the program more actively and send prior notices to residents approaching a hundred every month.” For more information, you can call the Mapo-gu senior welfare department (02-3153-8857).

Earlier, Mapo-gu was the first district in Seoul to provide paid “filial leave,” allowing employees to spend time with their parents. Employees are given one day of paid leave every year to visit their hometown or graves, go to the hospital or take a trip with their parents. The district also prepared “filial tables” in seven locations in its jurisdiction, which residents ages 75 and older can use for free, and has been running the pilot program since April. Residents prepare free lunches for senior citizens living alone to prevent the elderly from going without meals and to prevent lonely deaths or “godoksa.”

“Senior citizens turning a hundred are part of the generation that lived through Japanese occupation and the Korean War and built the Republic of Korea into a global power,” said Park Kang-soo, district mayor of Mapo-gu, adding, “We will continue to engage in filial administration to ensure the quality of life for the elderly and to help them enjoy a joyful old age.”