metaqsol A state luncheon honoring Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s visit featured a blend of Korean cuisine and Italian culinary elements.
President Lee Jae-myung gifted Meloni a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7, and both leaders took a selfie in a friendly atmosphere.
Both countries expressed intentions to strengthen cooperation in various fields, including cooperatives.
The Future Strategy Subcommittee concluded 10 meetings from September to December 2025 and announced its military restructuring recommendations on January 20, 2026.
The report addresses population decline, AI advancements, and diverse security threats by proposing a smart, technology-driven military leveraging advanced tech and civilian resources.
A total defense workforce exceeding 500,000—including 350,000 active troops and 150,000 civilian personnel—is recommended, with phased reforms emphasized.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced a legislative notice to ease location regulations for industrial complexes.
Key changes include allowing electrical and IT contractors to enter, expanding the scope of high-tech and knowledge industries, and opening cultural and sports facilities to local residents.
These revisions are expected to reduce business burdens and enhance investment and convenience for workers and communities in industrial complexes.
On January 20, 2026, the Financial Services Commission held a kickoff meeting for the Credit Evaluation System Reform TF to review current issues and discuss improvement plans.
The TF aims to enhance personal and small business credit evaluation, activate alternative credit assessment, and utilize AI for building key financial infrastructure.
Future plans include sequentially announcing improvement measures for each task and conducting research projects led by private experts.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced its first Basic Plan for Agricultural Employment Support for 2026–2030.
Key goals include raising the public sector’s share of farm labor supply to 60% by 2030, achieving 100% insurance coverage for seasonal workers by 2026, and mandating wage guarantee insurance.
The government aims to enhance labor supply and working conditions to ensure sustainable agriculture.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development released the 2023 Startup Survey results.
In 2023, there were 4.902 million startups, accounting for 59.1% of all SMEs, with 979,000 tech-based startups making up 20%.
Startups led by young entrepreneurs grew by 2.2%, and the government plans to increase the startup support budget to KRW 3.5 trillion by 2026.