Gyeonggi-do Supports Education, Jobs, and Welfare for Middle-Aged and Older Adults

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Gyeonggi Province is the first metropolitan local government in the country to establish the 'Gyeonggi Middle-aged and Elderly Happiness Campus' at universities, providing comprehensive services such as counseling for middle-aged and elderly people, resocialization and employment/startup education, retirement preparation support, and dedicated activity spaces.

In addition, it offers health management services using a mobile healthcare platform and psychological counseling via phone for mental care, as well as specialized programs for middle-aged and elderly single-person households.

On the 6th, Gyeonggi Province announced the '2021 Gyeonggi Province Middle-aged and Elderly Support Policy,' focusing on lifelong education, reemployment, and health and leisure welfare for the middle-aged and elderly.

According to the policy prepared by the province, it will first establish the 'Gyeonggi Middle-aged and Elderly Happiness Campus' at Gangnam University (Southern region) and Daejin University (Northern region), the first among metropolitan local governments nationwide, providing a total of 12 programs including counseling, resocialization and startup education, retirement preparation, and community activity spaces.

It also plans to support retired middle-aged and elderly people in their second life stage to engage in nonprofit volunteer activities at local children's centers, social welfare centers, and the like, utilizing their existing careers and knowledge.

Through the Gyeonggi Job Foundation's Middle-aged and Elderly Job Center, customized reemployment programs will be supported, and income-centered jobs will also be provided.

Furthermore, to enable a vibrant retirement, the 'Middle-aged and Elderly Mobile Healthcare' service will manage nutrition, exercise, and health using a mobile app, and the 'Middle-aged and Elderly Chat Salon' program will be operated so that middle-aged and elderly single-person households are not isolated and can continue social interactions.

To this end, the province will invest a total of 40 billion KRW, including 18 billion KRW of provincial funds, in 23 projects.

As of the end of 2020, the middle-aged and elderly population aged 50 to under 65 in Gyeonggi Province was 3.16 million, accounting for 23.6% of the total population.

Lee Byung-woo, Director of Welfare, explained, "The middle-aged and elderly generation had difficulty maintaining a balance between work and life and were unable to prepare for their own retirement while supporting their children and parents. They are a generation facing another crisis due to COVID-19. Since they were relatively excluded from life-cycle support policies, we have prepared support policies so that they can enjoy a healthy and stable old age."

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