[2020 National Audit] Jeong Jeom-sik "Fishermen's Debt Surged Sharply Over the Past 3 Years"

[Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] It has been pointed out that urgent measures are needed as fishing household debt has increased by 50% over the past three years.

Jeong Jeom-sik, a member of the National Assembly's Agriculture, Forestry, Livestock, and Fisheries Committee from the People Power Party, stated at the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries audit held at the National Assembly on the 8th, "At the end of 2019, the average debt of fishing households was 64.39 million KRW, a 4.1% increase compared to the previous year, and at the end of 2018, it had increased by 43.7%." The amount of debt increase over the past three years was 21.04 million KRW, a staggering 50% surge.

In 2019, the average income of fishing households was 48.42 million KRW, a 6.6% decrease compared to the previous year. Looking at income types, transfer income, which is the total amount of public subsidies (agriculture and fishery subsidies, public pensions, allowances, etc.) and private subsidies (family support subsidies, relative support subsidies), increased by 10.1%, and non-recurring income, which includes congratulatory and condolence income, retirement lump sums, and accident compensation, increased by 30.5%. On the other hand, fishery income decreased by 19.5%, and non-fishery income decreased by 1.5%.

Debt per fishing household increased by 15.25 million KRW (52.9%) from 28.83 million KRW in 2017 to 44.08 million KRW in 2019. Debt for aquaculture households increased by 34.43 million KRW (43%) from 80.09 million KRW to 114.52 million KRW.

Rep. Jeong said, "Since fishing household income is not keeping pace with the increase in debt, practical measures must be prepared to improve agricultural and fishery household income and reduce their debt so that debt reduction can be achieved through income growth."

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