Gwangyang City Receives Presidential Award in Childcare Sector This Year: "A Happy Childcare City Ideal for Raising Children"

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Hyung-kwon] Gwangyang City announced on the 18th that it received the Presidential Institutional Commendation along with Seoul Metropolitan City and Chungcheongnam-do in this year’s ‘Government Awards in the Childcare Sector’ conducted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare targeting local governments, individuals, and organizations nationwide.

Gwangyang, the youngest city in Jeollanam-do with an average age of 41.5 years, established conditions for being a ‘child-rearing friendly city’ through designations such as UNICEF’s ‘Child-Friendly City’ in January 2018 and the proclamation of the ‘Child and Women-Friendly City’ vision in February of the same year.

During the 7th elected term, the city’s top priority policies?△ strengthening the public nature of childcare △ providing demand-centered customized childcare services △ improving the quality of childcare services?received favorable evaluations from the review committee.

▲ Expansion of public childcare facilities such as national and public daycare centers to revitalize public childcare

The city is implementing a five-year basic plan to expand national and public daycare centers aiming to achieve a 40% utilization rate of national and public daycare centers by 2022. To provide high-quality childcare services and revitalize public childcare, the number of public daycare centers, which was 13 at the end of 2017, has been increased by 13 over the past three years, currently operating 26 public daycare centers.

Additionally, to enable parents who care for children at home and part-time or temporary workers to use hospitals, go out, or work short hours without difficulty, the city selected three time-based childcare facilities last year and one this year, and plans to expand by four more facilities next year, increasing the number annually.

▲ Leading childcare policies nationwide

The city has been providing parents with the difference in childcare fees for private and home daycare centers since 2018, aiming to realize free childcare. To improve indoor air quality, air purifiers have been installed throughout childcare and playrooms, setting an example for the Ministry of Health and Welfare to spread nationwide to daycare centers, among various pioneering childcare policies.

In particular, since March this year, Gwangyang has been the only city nationwide to create a childcare environment satisfying infants, parents, and teachers alike by investing 1.5 billion KRW in a project to adjust the number of children per teacher in daycare centers’ zero-year-old classes (including mixed 0 and 1-year-old classes) and classes for children with disabilities from the standard 3 children to 2 children per teacher. This ‘Class Size Adjustment Homeroom Teacher Salary Support Project’ has achieved a high satisfaction rate of 95% among childcare staff and parents.

▲ Strengthening childcare infrastructure

The Childcare Comprehensive Support Center, which will serve as a hub for Gwangyang’s childcare support projects, is being constructed with a budget of 6.3 billion KRW. It will have one basement floor and four above-ground floors, equipped with facilities such as play experience rooms, toy libraries, time-based childcare rooms, childcare cafes, counseling rooms, and program rooms. Staff are being hired for its temporary opening scheduled for January next year.

When the center officially begins operation in March next year, it is expected that the local childcare environment will greatly improve, reducing the childcare burden on parents.

Furthermore, next year, to provide children with a better childcare environment, the city plans to implement a ‘Green Remodeling Project’ with a budget of 3 billion KRW to improve energy performance and introduce eco-friendly ventilation systems to enhance indoor air quality at seven aging public daycare centers that are over 15 years old.

▲ Expanding community-based joint childcare

Since July 2017, the Gwangyang City Children’s Childcare Foundation, the first local government public-private cooperative organization, has been running distinctive childcare projects supported by citizens from all walks of life. These include ‘New Semester Celebration Fund Support for Children Aged 0-2 in Daycare Centers,’ ‘Graduation Photo Fee Support for Daycare and Kindergarten Children,’ ‘Free Care Services for Children with Infectious Diseases,’ ‘Experience Program Fee Support for Children Aged 3-5,’ ‘Developmental Visiting Support Project for Infants and Toddlers in Childcare Facilities,’ and ‘Visiting Cultural Performances,’ making it a nationwide model of admiration.

Gwangyang, established as a ‘Happy Childcare City Good for Raising Children,’ plans to continue focusing all its administrative capabilities on children, the future leaders, and to implement childcare policies that can be tangibly felt, maintaining its reputation as a premium childcare city.

Mayor Jeong Hyun-bok of Gwangyang said, “Receiving the Presidential Institutional Commendation is the result of the joint efforts of about 1,500 childcare staff and 150,000 Gwangyang citizens to realize a ‘Happy City Good for Raising Children.’ We will continue to do our best to improve the quality of the childcare environment and create a happy Gwangyang for parents and children.”

Meanwhile, due to prolonged daycare center closures and withdrawal of enrolled children, since May, Gwangyang has been providing an additional 50,000 KRW per class to private and home daycare centers. The city has also supported emergency disinfection five times, 75,586 masks, 194 non-contact thermometers, 3,206 hand sanitizers, 1,830 hand soaps, and 532 disinfectants for all facilities to overcome COVID-19.

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