Suicide Rate in 2020: 25.7 per 100,000 People... Both Suicide Rate and Number of Suicides Decrease

Ministry of Health and Welfare and Life Respect Hope Foundation Publish '2022 Suicide Prevention White Paper'

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Young-won] In 2020, South Korea's suicide rate and the number of suicide deaths both decreased compared to the previous year.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Life Respect Hope Foundation published the "2022 Suicide Prevention White Paper" on the 14th, which includes this information. The white paper covers the suicide status in 2020, the first year of the COVID-19 outbreak, and suicide prevention projects by sector.

According to the white paper, the number of suicides in South Korea in 2020 was 13,195, a decrease of 604 from the previous year. The suicide rate was 25.7 per 100,000 people, down 1.2 during the same period. Compared to the peak year of 2011 (15,906 suicides, suicide rate 31.7), the number of suicides decreased by 17.0%, and the suicide rate decreased by 19.0%.

By gender, males accounted for 9,093 suicides, representing 68.9% of all suicides, more than females (4,102; 31.1%). The suicide rate for males was 35.5, 2.2 times higher than females at 15.9. However, the number of self-harm and suicide attempts visiting emergency rooms was 21,176 for females, 1.54 times higher than males.

By age group, those in their 50s had the highest number of suicides at 2,606, followed by those in their 40s at 2,405. The suicide rate, which indicates the number of suicides per 100,000 people, increased with age, with those aged 80 and above having the highest rate at 62.6. Among those visiting emergency rooms for self-harm and suicide attempts, people in their 20s accounted for the largest share at 28.7%.

By region, Gyeonggi-do had the highest number of suicides at 3,129, followed by Seoul (2,161) and Busan (921). The region with the fewest suicides was Sejong (64). Considering the different population structures of each region, the "age-standardized suicide rate" calculated by standardizing the population by region was highest in Chungnam (27.9), Jeju (25.5), and Gangwon (25.4).

Women reported "mental difficulties" as the motive for suicide at a high rate across all age groups, whereas men showed different patterns by age. For men, those in their teens and twenties cited mental difficulties, those in their 30s to 50s cited economic difficulties, and those aged 60 and above cited physical difficulties as the main motives for suicide.

Although domestic suicide indicators showed a downward trend, they remain high compared to other countries. As of 2019, South Korea had the highest suicide rate among OECD member countries at 24.6 per 100,000 people. This is 2.2 times higher than the OECD average suicide rate of 11.0.

Jung Eun-young, Director of Mental Health Policy at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, said, "The 2022 Suicide Prevention White Paper provides data to review suicide-related statistics during the first year of the national disaster caused by COVID-19." She added, "Fortunately, the suicide rate appears to have decreased, but future trends should be monitored cautiously." She also stated, "The government will continue to implement effective suicide prevention policies reflecting the rapidly changing social environment."

※ If you have difficult-to-discuss concerns such as depression or know family or acquaintances experiencing such difficulties, you can receive 24-hour expert counseling through the Suicide Prevention Hotline 1393, Mental Health Counseling 1577-0199, Hope Call 129, Life Call 1588-9191, and Youth Call 1388.

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