Gwanak-gu Produces '2021 Child-Friendly Budget'... Why?

A Total of 181 Child-Friendly Budget Projects, 171.4 Billion KRW (21.9% of General Account) Allocated... Developmental Rights and Educational Environment Sectors Hold the Largest Share, Participation Sector Budget Significantly Increased

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Junhee) has created the "2021 Child-Friendly Budget Book" to identify projects affecting children in the region, analyze the fairness and appropriateness of budget allocation, and utilize this analysis for project development in promoting a child-friendly city.

The "Child-Friendly Budget Book" is a budget document that analyzes project budgets directly or indirectly related to children according to global common standards, including the four major rights of children and the six areas of child-friendliness.

This year, Gwanak-gu's child-friendly budget is 171.4 billion KRW (21.9% of the general account main budget), a reduction of about 1.8 billion KRW compared to the previous year, supporting a total of 181 projects.

This reflects a decrease in budgets such as child allowances due to a decline in the number of children in the region and a reduction in event-related expenses due to the spread of COVID-19.

Analyzing the budget according to the four major rights of children, the development right sector accounts for the highest proportion at 60.8% of the total budget, followed by survival rights (33.2%), protection rights (5.4%), and participation rights (0.6%).

In the analysis by the six areas of child-friendliness, the education environment sector accounts for the highest proportion at 57.4% of the total budget, followed by health and social services (32.5%), safety and protection (5.4%), play and leisure (2.6%), home environment (1.6%), and participation and citizenship (0.6%).

Furthermore, analyzing the budget by child beneficiary groups, projects directly affecting children as the target group, called "direct impact projects," total 121 projects with 153.1 billion KRW, accounting for 89.1% of the entire child-friendly budget, significantly higher than indirect projects.

Additionally, support projects for vulnerable children such as multicultural families, children with disabilities, low-income and single-parent families, and out-of-school youth include four additional projects such as "Support for Out-of-School Youth" and "Internship Across Boundaries," totaling 34 projects with about 12.6 billion KRW, accounting for 7.4% of the total budget.

Meanwhile, the district achieved the great success of being certified as a "Child-Friendly City" by the UNICEF Korea Committee last year and is making various efforts to establish a system where about 40,000 children in the region can live safely, without discrimination, and happily, in line with the district administration goal of "Together Welfare" during the 7th local government term.

Mayor Park Junhee stated, "To promote a balanced and substantial child-friendly city project, we will analyze and identify the impact on children in advance when implementing projects and focus on discovering various projects and securing budgets." He added, "We will continue to implement child-friendly policies to create a happy Gwanak by reflecting the diverse opinions of children."

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