Gov't should lead innovative growth by supporting small, mid-sized firms: experts

The current Moon Jae-in government has been striving to improve people's livelihoods and revitalize the economy.While some progress has been made during its first two years in office,... experts say that more needs to be done,... especially in the area of innovative growth.Park Hee-jun reports. A people-centered economy.The Moon Jae-in administration's economic vision has been credited with improving labor productivity and quality of life,... through the reduction of working hours and the minimum wage hike.But recent data show unsatisfactory trends in areas, including exports and real GDP.During a policy conference Tuesday to evaluate the Moon government's first two years in office,... experts raised concerns over such negative economic figures. And the solution they proposed... was innovative growth. "Income-led growth is a short term solution that affects the country's potential growth rate. To achieve long-term economic development, the government needs to focus on continuing policies related to technology development and innovative growth."At the center of such policies should be small and midsized companies-- the backbone of employment and new growth engines.Such advice is in line with President Moon's current economic direction.But not enough is being done and the government has a long way to go in supporting the business environment of such companies,... especially concerning their competitiveness."Starting a company and developing it into a large company is considered the heart of innovative growth. But small and mid-sized companies' productivity only amounts to 30 percent of that of large companies. Smart factories can be the most effective solution to that."And although South Korea is leading in the data industry and with the 5G network, it's falling behind in other areas, mainly artificial intelligence.While the U.S. has more than a thousand AI companies and Japan over a hundred,... South Korea has just about 40. Experts emphasize the need for drastic measures that can increase the country's competitiveness in fields related to the fourth industrial revolution,... which is to be the main source of economic growth from here on.Park Hee-jun, Arirang News.