Gyeongbuk Province Holds 'Population Day' Commemoration Event in Uiseong County Facing Local Extinction Crisis

Jeon Woo-heon, Deputy Governor for Economic Affairs, "All Efforts to Create a Child-Friendly Environment"

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongwook Park] Gyeongsangbuk-do held the '2020 9th Gyeongsangbuk-do Population Day Commemoration Event' on the 8th at Uiseong-gun Cultural Center in collaboration with the Daegu-Gyeongbuk branch of the Korea Population, Health and Welfare Association.

The event was held in Uiseong-gun, which has the highest risk of local extinction among 228 basic local governments nationwide. Since 2013, the number of deaths (about 800) has been about four times higher than the number of births (about 200), solidifying its status as a symbol of a severe population cliff.

The event, attended by about 100 people including Jeon Woo-heon, Deputy Governor for Economy of Gyeongbuk Province, Kim Ju-su, Mayor of Uiseong-gun, provincial and county council members, and members of the Population Policy Committee, featured ▲awards for meritorious persons commemorating Population Day ▲screening of winning entries of childbirth encouragement UCC, photo, and slogan contests ▲and a performance expressing the message of 'Happy Children's Voices, Gyeongbuk's Hopeful Echo.'

Since December last year, Korea's population has started to decline, with a total fertility rate of 0.92, making it the only country in the world with a total fertility rate below 1. Gyeongbuk Province is also facing a serious population decline. As of last year, the total fertility rate was 1.09, and the number of births was 14,490, a 30% decrease compared to 20,616 in 2016, three years earlier.

Gyeongbuk is the region with the highest number of returnees to farming and rural areas nationwide, with 16,984 people aged 60 or older moving in by June this year. However, 23,080 young people moved out. Since becoming a super-aged society with over 20% elderly population in December last year, the aging has been worsening, with the elderly population increasing by 1.3% in just half a year.

In this situation, the pilot village project of Neighbors in An-gye-myeon, Uiseong-gun, which has been a key focus since the 7th local government administration took office, is emerging as a new alternative to overcome population extinction. They are steadily building a settlement foundation where young people can return and live, including salaried young farmers, smart farms, expansion of national and public daycare centers, and construction of youth housing.

Gyeongbuk Province explained that these efforts have been nationally recognized, achieving great success by being selected for various major government public projects (9.1 billion KRW for Regional Development Investment Agreement Project, 8 billion KRW for Urban Regeneration New Deal) and winning the grand prize in the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's Low Birthrate Overcoming Excellent Policy Competition.

Deputy Governor Jeon Woo-heon said, "The vicious cycle of aging and low birthrate, intensified by youth outflow, is the result of complex factors including our society's economy, culture, consciousness, and systems," adding, "We will devote all our capabilities to creating an environment favorable for childbirth through changes and innovations in line with the times, making Gyeongbuk a place that revives."

Meanwhile, World Population Day is an international commemorative day designated by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) under the UN to commemorate the world population exceeding 5 billion on July 11, 1987. In Korea, to raise awareness of population issues through the Framework Act on Low Birthrate and Aging Society, July 11 has been observed as a national commemorative day annually since 2011.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.